CCSD Superintendent Dr. Jesus Jara speaks to the media regarding the first day of the new school year, Monday Aug 24, 2020.
Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2020 | 2:04 p.m.
Clark County School District Superintendent Jesus Jara was rated as “minimally effective to effective” in his latest performance review, with some School Board members criticizing him for a lack of communication.
Jara, who leads a district of 315,000 students, scored an overall rating of 2.5 on a 4-point scale.
He earned 606 out of 980 possible points on nine performance indicators, three of them focused on communications. Jara scored between 43 and 51 of 84 possible points on each of those three indicators.
"Of his three evaluations in 18 months, communication has been the No. 1 issue with the district and the superintendent," board member Danielle Ford said.
Board members did not go into details about their concerns at a meeting Tuesday night.
In a statement released after the meeting, Jara said he was disappointed with parts of the evaluation and acknowledged criticism surrounding how and when to reopen schools as the coronavirus pandemic continues.
Students have been working remotely from home since mid-March.
“Understandably, fear and anxiety have created great uncertainty and much friction. Through it all, I have made every effort to communicate with parents, teachers, and students and, of course, the School Board,” Jara said.
“I will continue to communicate transparently and directly on all matters affecting our students and schools,” he said. “This will be even more critical as safely reopening our schools soon becomes a reality.”
On Wednesday, the School District announced it had reached a tentative agreement with the teachers union that could lead some students returning to the classroom next year.
The School Board is scheduled to review the agreement and a phased reopening plan at a meeting on Jan. 14.
Students in pre-kindergarten through third grade could return to the classroom as early as February, if plans are approved, officials said.
