3.01 Conduct of Dr. Jesus F. Jara.

7/27/2020 Clark County School District Mail - 3.01 Conduct of Dr. Jesus F. Jara.

https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0?ik=191e2a255b&view=pt&search=all&permthid=thread-f%3A1673387622169983631&simpl=msg-f%3A16733876221… 1/1

Lisa Chrapcynski [School Board Office] <[email protected]>

3.01 Conduct of Dr. Jesus F. Jara.1 message

Patty Hay Mon, Jul 27, 2020 at 9:19 AMTo: "[email protected]" <[email protected]>

I am begging the board to please stop the negative distractions.

We have a responsibility to all of the children, parents and staff to provide the best possible distance education.

We cannot afford to loose Superintendent Jara, we do not have the money or the time.

Please consider focusing this energy to giving all students Chromebooks and internet access.

Build us up and do not tear us down.

Thank you,

Patty Hay

Mom, Grandmother, & Teacher

July 29, 2020 Reference 3.01 of 15

7/27/2020 Clark County School District Mail - Public comment on 3.01; conduct of Dr. Jara:



Public comment on 3.01; conduct of Dr. Jara:1 message

Bree Sapp Mon, Jul 27, 2020 at 11:09 AMTo: [email protected]

Dr. Jara had the opportunity to lead the district and show us distance learning from March - May and failed to do anythingmeaningful. He is clearly dishonest and has shown he cannot interact with the governor and the state superintendent. Hehad the opportunity to put together a meaningful plan for September ongoing and has failed to do so. He additionally hasnot shown any significant leadership over the summer. By presenting one plan to the board at the last minute heeffectively gave the district one option. Our children deserve better than this. Please remove superintendent Jara and putsomeone within the district who understands the special considerations that our 24 hour economy has who can help leadus during this challenging era. I believe this is possible but not with Jara at the helm. Additionally he has shown time andtime again that he only cares about his own pocketbook. Why, Jara did you not offer to take a pay cut like everyone elsein Nevada has?

Thank you Board of trustees for taking the appropriate action and ending his contract.

Additional public comment: please consider using some of the facilities money to install upgraded air purification systemsin schools versus new turf. 3M makes air filters that trap virus and have high mercury ratings that are twice as expensiveas regular filters. This is an optional step that could improve air quality in a meaningful way at our schools.


7/27/2020 Clark County School District Mail - Special Board Meeting, Item numbers 3.01 and 3.03



Special Board Meeting, Item numbers 3.01 and 3.031 message

Robert Cowles [Rancho HS] Mon, Jul 27, 2020 at 1:19 PM

Madam president, trustees,

For the record, my name is Robert Cowles.

That there was a spat between the superintendent and the governor of Nevada should not come as a surprise. This isn’t the first one afterall. Like the last one, this one was about money.

A number of people in the community have stated that it is not the time to discuss the incident and responses surrounding AB-2 of thespecial session, because we’re trying to reopen schools during a pandemic, trying to get technology to our students, trying to get teacherswho are used to being in the classroom to teach students who are also there ready to teach online.

There is validity to that point, but it also begs the question, “If not now, when do the trustees have the discussion?” It’s an accountabilitything.

As for the request to take carry over funds from schools and return them to central for redistribution, that was a bad idea, one that wouldhave removed what little trust there is between the superintendent and administrators, not to mention teachers and staff.

That the superintendent realized that it was a terrible decision, and tried to have the proposal removed does suggest that thesuperintendent has the ability to recognize that he made a mistake. The problem is that when confronted with this while testifying beforethe legislature, he lied and tried to shift blame, when he should have admitted he made a mistake—and tried to correct it. Speaker Frierson,State Superintendent Ebert, and Governor Sisolak have all called him out on this, and again, instead of copping to it, he lied.

This is not to say that Speaker Frierson and Governor Sisolak are without blame in the funding fiasco that is Nevada Public Education.They absolutely are, for they refused to adequately fund education in Nevada during the 2019 session, just as politicians in the legislature,and the governor’s office, have for years. If the superintendent had been honest, he could have easily muffled what looks to be a diversionto draw attention away from the governor/legislature’s inability to offset any of those cuts.

Instead, he provided an even larger diversion than the governor could have hoped for, especially given HIS lack of leadership during thespecial session.

Now, of course, I cannot say with any certainty that Governor Sisolak or Speaker Frierson intended to create a diversion, but it sureworked out that way.

As for what to do about Superintendent Jara, you may remember I advised against hiring him, citing statements from those in Florida, butthat ship has sailed. Instead of telling you what to do, I will simply ask that you consider a few questions. These questions would have alsocome in handy in the situation between our last Superintendent and our last Governor too.

1. Did the Superintendent damage the relationship between himself (and by extension CCSD) and the Governor?2. Did the Superintendent damage the relationship between himself (and by extension CCSD) and the legislature? 3. Will the Superintendent be able to work effectively with the legislature and the governor in the upcoming regular session of the NevadaLegislature in February 2021?4. Can the Superintendent effectively lead the Clark County School District into and through what is likely to be the most challengingschool year in our lifetime?

I will close with a suggestion. IF you decide to remove the Superintendent from his position, the person who takes over as interimSuperintendent should not be the next permanent Superintendent of CCSD. It should be exactly what it is, an interim position.

Thank you for your time.


7/27/2020 Clark County School District Mail - Special Board Meeting, Item numbers 3.01 and 3.03


-- Robert Cowles


7/28/2020 Clark County School District Mail - Public Comment



Public Comment1 message

Lisa Tanin Tue, Jul 28, 2020 at 10:10 AMTo: [email protected]

Name: Lisa TaninAgenda item: 3.01 Conduct of Dr. Jesus F. Jara.

I am a constituent of Trustee Ford's District F, a CCSD parent and teacher. I do NOT support the removal of Dr. Jara assuperintendent. Dr. Jara has consistently put students and staff above all else. This is sadly unusual among CCSDsuperintendents and should not be considered a fault. His focus on student achievement for all students is real andunwavered. This does not mean that I agree with all his actions. SB2 would have devastated the very school that my sonattends and where I teach. However, given the budget deficit, it makes sense for the Superintendent to explore alloptions. It is hardly a fireable offense. Trustee Ford expressed concern that families may not have the confidence to sendtheir children to CCSD schools this fall and that it could be devastating to the budget. Yet she has no problem, removingleadership at this most critical time. Without consistent leadership, families will have less confidence in the school boardand district, not more. Teacher morale will be low and anxiety high. Ford's actions are clearly politically motivated. Iencourage you all to do what is best for the community and retain Dr Jara at least through his current employmentcontract.


7/28/2020 Clark County School District Mail - Regarding the special meeting tomorrow's items 3.01 and 3.03



Regarding the special meeting tomorrow's items 3.01 and 3.031 message

Stephen Benning Tue, Jul 28, 2020 at 11:21 AMTo: [email protected]

Though I appreciate the board calling Dr. Jara to clarify the happenings surrounding AB2, I do not appreciate the rush tojudgment that Trustee Ford has embodied. Terminating our superintendent during a global pandemic is a step that shouldonly be contemplated after all the facts have been collected and digested thoroughly, not placed as an agenda item onthat same meeting.

I have not contacted Trustee Ford directly with my concerns - even though she is technically my trustee - because I donot trust her ability to process or faithfully represent any feedback I would give. During board meetings, she has shown aninability to focus on the discussions of critical matters and expressed mutually contradictory opinions within minutes ofeach other. For example, when the board was considering the initial reopening plan to forward to the state, she both saidthat she hadn't had enough time to consider the plan the district was advancing and advanced her own plan withoutorganization, coherence, or notice about it. Indeed, she disregarded the feedback she had collated on trusteeford.com totweak the existing plan in favor of advancing her own novel plan.

Trustee Ford's behavior is manifestly unprofessional, and her crusades come across as narcissistic campaigns forattention rather than serious, considered attempts to help the various stakeholders the board must serve. Her demeanorwith fellow trustees is antagonistic and impulsive, throwing the board into chaos and forcing it to consider drastic actionimmediately instead of after careful deliberation. She disregards the feedback from her constituents in favor of enactingan agenda that will have her name plastered over the news. She fails to consider the employment of support staff, thephysical well-being and education of low-income students, and the importance of continuity during uncertain times in herproposals. Though I believe she does care about students in some ways, her penchant for erratic theatrics overrides anygood this meeting might do.

I would support Trustee Ford's recall and replacement long before Superintendent Jara's.


http://trusteeford.com/

7/28/2020 Clark County School District Mail - Public Comment for 7-29-20-2.01, 3.01, 3.02, 3.03



Public Comment for 7-29-20-2.01, 3.01, 3.02, 3.031 message

Autumn Tampa Tue, Jul 28, 2020 at 3:40 PMTo: "[email protected]" <[email protected]>, BoardOfTrustees<[email protected]>

Here is my Public Comment for the CCSD School Board meeting on July 29, 2020. Please find asummary of Public Comments below, and Public Comment for a non-agenda item 2.01 for bothwritten and oral summary.

Also, Attached are Word Docs for items 3.01, 3.02 and 3.03 for the Written Record, along with asummary to be read/reviewed below.

Thank-you

Autumn Tampa

2.01 Non-Agenda Item - ESP and Teacher Training Questions - For Written Record and to beRead at Meeting

Myself and other staff are wondering if Training is being offered virtually from home for all ESPsand Teachers to help ensure safety of employees, or are only some employees being offeredTraining virtually from home during August 5, 2020 - August 21, 2020??

3.01 Conduct of Dr. Jesus F. Jara - Summary to be Read -

Superintendent Jara's submission of AB2 was appropriate and well-intentioned in order to helpCCSD balance the Budget through this COVID19 Global Crisis, and I believe he was targeted in aspolitical payback and to help further the political agendas of others.

Item 3.02 Representations Regarding State Directives for Opening Schools. - Summary tobe Read

Detailed information was excellently presented at multiple Board meetings, and hundreds ofquestions were patiently answered by CCSD staff, which makes me believe the intentions andmotivations for this item and meeting are not honorable.

3.03 Termination for Convenience of the Employment Contract with Dr. Jesus F. Jara- Summary to be Read

I believe several Trustees have a personal negative bias against Superintendent Jara and aretaking this action in order to further their own personal and political agendas, andthat Superintendent Jara should NOT be terminated!!


7/28/2020 Clark County School District Mail - Public Comment for 7-29-20-2.01, 3.01, 3.02, 3.03


3 attachments

Item 3.01 for July 29 2020.docx15K

Item 3.02 for July 29 2020.docx16K

Item 3.03 for 7-29-20.docx16K


https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0?ui=2&ik=191e2a255b&view=att&th=173979583d6fecc2&attid=0.1&disp=attd&safe=1&zw



Superintendent Jara and CCSD Board of Trustees 7-27-20 2832 E Flamingo Rd. Las Vegas, NV 89121 Dear Superintendent Jara and CCSD Board of Trustees, Item 3.01 Conduct of Dr. Jesus F. Jara.

I am outraged and disappointed that CCSD Trustees are taking this action!! The time and energy being spent on trying to oust Superintendent Jara for frivolous and contrived infractions is unacceptable!! He should NOT be terminated!!

I believe AB2 was a great idea! CCSD has been restricted in balancing the Budget and properly managing CCSD because of AB469 (2017) Reorganization bill for years. The Board of Trustees were against the Reorganization bill because of how it tied the hands of the District while holding CCSD Trustees and Superintendent accountable for things they have no control over!! A waiver of the restricted Ending Fund Balance would have been a good solution. I have been following Educational politics for a long time. I have seen many things happen that were not good for the children of Clark County, but that were instead actions taken to further some politician’s careers. Some actions were part of Legislative backroom deals that created unfunded mandates placing undue hardship on CCSD. And now, I believe I see clearly the desired effects of the action being taken by the Trustees to oust Superintendent Jara. And the intentions are to further the political agenda of several groups through the action of terminating Superintendent Jara in order to replace him with someone else that will more readily go along with their agenda. To me, several members of the Legislature have a biased opinion of Superintendent Jara for reasons unknown to me other than AB2. If I recall correctly, Superintendent Jara did not say he didn’t submit the bill. He said he tried to pull it when he realized that there was not any political appetite for the bill, and that it was too late. This is action is being used as an excuse to target him. Respectfully, Autumn Tampa


7/28/2020 Clark County School District Mail - Special Meeting July 29 - public comment 3.01-.03



Special Meeting July 29 - public comment 3.01-.031 message

sylvia lazos Tue, Jul 28, 2020 at 6:06 PMTo: "[email protected]" <[email protected]>

Dear Trustees,

I recommend that you end Dr Jara’s employment for convenience.

I lobbied very hard two years ago against the insider superintendent candidate, and in favor of a superintendent who would be achange agent and focus on equity. You appointed Superintendent Jara, on a 4-3 vote, and I welcomed him to this community with areception at my home that included all the key education leaders of this community. I made key introductions for Dr. Jara and offeredmy support. After two years, from my position as long time education leader of the Latinx community, I have concluded that Dr. Jarahas not been a change agent or equity leader. Granted, he has changed many things, but too little has been accomplished. ELLscores have gone backwards; the diversity of CCSD leadership team is nearly nonexistent. Deputy Superintendent has halted theimplementation of ELL master plan for over a year and she cut, with the approval of Dr. Jara, the ELL department by 25% withoutexplanation. Zoom and Victory survived Special Session cuts, not because of Dr. Jara’s leadership, but because the Latinx andAfrican American community rose in support of these investments that have made a difference in the lives of over 100,000 of ourpoorest children of color. In my opinion, Dr. Jara has neglected these programs, and has allowed some of these schools that needleadership change to continue to flounder. More recently, Dr. Jara halted the renovation of Global HS, the Zoom school for refugees. I say with great regret that when it comes to ELL, refugees and working class children, Dr. Jara is not our champion.

Dr. Jara has presided over a chaotic reopening process. As Trustee Cavazos has pointed out, most parents and staff have lostconfidence in CCSD reopening plan. Thus, arguments that we should not change CCSD leader in a pandemic actually cut the otherway, because what we need is less confusion and employees feeling that they are valued and will be safe. I hear from many parentsthat they have lost confidence in CCSD’s ability to reopen safely, or to be able to pull off remote learning right this time. On theimportant equity issue of CCSD reopening with equal broadband access for all children, the critical leadership has come from theNevada State Superintendent and the Governor’s COVID19 task force.

For me, the issue of why we need change now, and not a year from now, boils down to the indisputable fact that Dr. Jara has lost thetrust of the Governor, the Nevada Superintendent and the Legislature. In Special Session 2020, Dr Jara either misrepresented keyinformation regarding legislative proposal AB2, or equivocated so much that Legislative leadership became unsure of what it is thatCCSD wanted from Special Session. Young legislators, like Assemblyman Howard Watts and Assemblywoman SelenaTorres, decried the cynicism behind AB2, which took needed carryover monies from mostly Title 1 schools and allowed centraladministration to control these dollars, presumably for other deals never made public by Dr. Jara. At the last minute, CCSDcollaborated with CCEA on an amendment that took three hours of legislative time to explain, but made no sense. Both Republicansand Democrats tried to figure out AB2, but Dr. Jara was MIA. At the end of this meeting of the Assembly, Speaker Friersonadmonished Dr. Jara, “you don’t get to light a firecracker and then run away.” I was embarrassed that our Southern Nevada educationleader would not take responsibility for his actions, and then was unwilling to apologize. After Dr. Jara’s perplexing actions last July8, much of the Legislature and the Executive branch have lost confidence in his ability to lead with integrity and communicate clearlyabout the needs of CCSD children. This will leave CCSD rudderless during next session when there will be more brutal cuts to Nevada education budget. As a long time leader of the Latinx community, I ask that you please focus on what is best for kids. CCSD needs an effective leaderfor equity whose integrity will not be questioned. It is not enough to be a Latino man, our children need someone who can get the jobdone.

In collegiality, Sylvia Lazos


7/29/2020 Clark County School District Mail - 7/29 Meeting



7/29 Meeting1 message

Richard Eurich Tue, Jul 28, 2020 at 8:44 PMTo: [email protected]

3.01 & 3.03

After watching the last several board meetings, I am embarrassed to say I work forCCSD. The Board is who should be up for removal. The fact that you are doing thisnow, with literally one week before teachers return, is appalling. Honor the contract,and then do what you want. Relieving him now means you pay him for doing nothing. What sense does that make during this financial crisis? Your job is to make policy, notrun the District. Every single one of you, especially you Ms. Ford, have made mistakesin your tenure as a board member. Dr. Jara is not perfect, nor are any of you. We arescrambling now because of your inability to make a decision. I don't agree with half thestuff Dr. Jara does, but what you are attempting to do here is absolutely wrong.

Rick Eurich


7/29/2020 Clark County School District Mail - Item 3.01



Item 3.011 message

Vicki Kreidel Tue, Jul 28, 2020 at 11:33 PMTo: [email protected]

Vicki Kreidel, President of NEA of Southern Nevada

Good Afternoon Madam President and the Board of Trustees,

My name is Vicki Kreidel and I am a 2nd grade teacher and the president of NEA of Southern Nevada. Today I want to talk to you about trust. You see, trust is a "firm belief of the reliability, truth, ability, or strengthof someone." I am very disappointed to say that I believe that our Superintendent Dr. Jesus Jara is not a person worthy of our trust.

After watching legislative proceedings myself, and examining the documents submitted for this meeting it appears that Dr. Jara lied multiple times and to a number of people. I wish more than anything that this was not true. I wish that as we face what will undoubtedly be an extremely challenging school year that we had full faith in our Superintendent. But that is not the case for many of us.

So why is it so important we trust in our Superintendent? It is literally the FOUNDATION of everything he does.Working in education is stressful on a good day. But when we will be required to face new challenges it'seven more vital that we trust the person leading us. The families of CCSD must trust our Superintendentto guide us to creating dynamic, effective education programs. Our students must trust him to help them learnsuccessfully and keep them safe. And our state authorities must trust him as they collaborate to find new fundingopportunities and design educational policy.

The reason this situation is so difficult is because trust is earned. And once it's broken, then it's sometimes impossibleto earn back. There is clear evidence that Dr. Jara lied on several occasions. He lied directly to the Legislature andSpeaker Frierson. He lied to the Trustees. And he lied to all of us listening to him during different question/answervenues. How does this help communication? No one of us ever knows when he's telling the truth or not.

This afternoon the Trustees are tasked with determining if this behavior is enough to warrant his removal asSuperintendent. I believe that most of you are capable of looking at all of the evidence and making this determination.This isn't about feelings or revenge. It isn't about saving face or anyone's personal agendas. It's about truth,and it's about simple right and wrong. It's about integrity.

Had Dr. Jara sat in front of the Legislature that day and said he changed his mind about the bill. If he'd told all of usthat he was sorry but he had since realized it wasn't a good idea, things would be different. But that's not what he did.Instead he lied about something that he didn't need to lie about. I ask you if he's willing to lie about something that canbe proven untrue, what else has he lied about? How do we follow and trust a person who has proven to be dishonest?How will Dr. Jara be able to rebuild relationships with state authorities after lying to and about them repeatedly?How will his choices affect all of us in CCSD?

Let me ask you this: If an educator lied publicly to parents, their Admin and then district officials about something important, what would happen? At the very least they would face disciplinary action. In my experience, they wouldlikely get a suspension or possibly a termination. We all know that kind of thing will result in getting in trouble.Why would there be one standard for us and a different one for our leadership? How does that affect district morale?

Everyone is watching. We need to know that doing the right thing comes with rewards and doing the wrong thinghas consequences. Our students and families are watching. Your employees are watching.

We are all trusting you to do the right thing today..


7/29/2020 Clark County School District Mail - Public Comment in Support



Public Comment in Support1 message

'Caryne Shea' via BoardMtgComments <[email protected]> Wed, Jul 29, 2020 at 2:27 AM

To: "[email protected]" <[email protected]>

Please accept this public comment in Support of Dr. Jara for Trustee special mtg on 7/29.

Thank you,

Caryne Shea

Public Comment in Support.pdf28K


https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0?ui=2&ik=191e2a255b&view=att&th=17399e6607ebfee1&attid=0.1&disp=attd&safe=1&zw

Good afternoon, President Brooks, Trustees and Dr. Jara, My name is Caryne Shea and I have two children in the Clark County School District. I have been actively involved in advocating for better education funding and policy in Nevada since 2014. I have testified in the last four legislative sessions and have found the actions of our state Legislature, as well as our current Governor to consistently prioritize everything BUT public education. In fact, in February, I, along with other parent plaintiffs filed a lawsuit against the state to sue for sufficient funding for our students. With respect to agenda item 3.01, you question that Dr. Jara has permanently damaged a relationship with a group of people whose priorities are centered on benefitting those who make the largest campaign donations. If you think a better relationship with Dr. Jara would yield anything for our district, you’re naive about the priorities of those in office. And if those relationships are so precious to you, the employment you should really be concerned with is in the Government Relations office. With respect to agenda item 3.03, I would argue that this is the most inconvenient time imaginable. Your focus should be 100% on the achievement of our students as we reopen with distance learning. This means taking into consideration the last two years, where Dr. Jara has implemented three principal training programs, created a pilot program with Sam Khan integrating MAPP, created the Advisory committee for Equity and Access and the accompanying report and action steps, created partnerships with communities and business organizations which were previously nonexistent, and who actually HOLDS ADMINISTRATORS accountable. One high performing administrator shared that she has never had a superintendent in this district who has been so instructionally sound. This is what you should be weighing. The people in Carson City, who Jon Ralston recently stated had “a cancerous neglect for education” should not be the reason to discount the gains that have been made in CCSD through Dr. Jara’s vision.


7/29/2020 Clark County School District Mail - Wednesday, July 29, 2020 Special Board Meeting, 1:00 p.m.



Wednesday, July 29, 2020 Special Board Meeting, 1:00 p.m.1 message

Paul James Wed, Jul 29, 2020 at 9:59 AMTo: [email protected]

Agenda Items 3.01, 3.02, 3.03

Roughly 25% of our valley's population expects the social responsibility of public education to be fulfilled. Everyonebenefits from the experience, guidance, nutritional support and camaraderie children share in the CCSD. Today isanother example of adults that are distracted from the social responsibility we all share. State tax dollars generatedspecifically for education are lost amongst the constant rhetoric of the CCSD Board of Trustees. Dollars sit in Carson Cityto educate at will, not terminate at will. The contract is to be fulfilled on both parts. When the assessment is made at theset time period, that is when the board acts accordingly.

Look at the tail that is wagging your/our dog and pony show.

Paul James


3.01 Conduct of Dr. Jesus F. Jara.

Documents

Transcript of 3.01 Conduct of Dr. Jesus F. Jara.