Thursday, May 21, 2020 | 2 a.m.
The seven-member Clark County School Board will be reshaped in the coming months as the Clark County School District grapples with the lasting educational and fiscal impacts of coronavirus.
Three trustees — District C representative Linda Young, District B representative Chris Garvey, and District A representative Deanna Wright — are not eligible to run for reelection due to term limits. School board President and District E representative Lola Brooks, who is running for reelection, faces six challengers.
The school board’s primary role is to oversee and approve major budgetary decisions, curriculum and policies in conjunction with the superintendent and other district officials, according to the Nevada Legislature. The board is also responsible for appointing the superintendent and approving certain personnel decisions. Members earn $750 per month.
Those responsibilities could be especially significant this year, with CCSD facing an estimated $37.78 million budget shortfall for fiscal year 2021 because of the pandemic's financial strain and decreasing enrollment. The district is also in the process of determining what schools will look like in the fall.
With much at stake for the district, here’s a brief rundown of the 30 candidates running for the school board, their backgrounds and where they stand on some issues. Information was mostly pulled from candidates’ forums put on this week by Teach for America Las Vegas and candidates’ campaign websites.
District A, representing the southeast valley, including Henderson, Searchlight and Laughlin
Andrew Cartwright:
The Sun was unable to find a campaign website for Cartwright containing information about his platform or candidacy. He also did not attend this week’s candidate forum.
Kari Deike
Deike served as a librarian and general education teacher in the district for 30 years, she said during the candidate forum. Now retired, she volunteers for her church, for the children’s literacy program Spread the Word Nevada, and for the Just One Project, according to her campaign website. She says she has a unique perspective as both an educator and a parent of four former CCSD students.
Lisa Guzman
Guzman is the executive director of the Education Association of Support Employees, the support professionals’ union for the district. She is also assistant executive director of the Nevada State Education Association, which represents teachers across the state. She is a former second-, fourth- and sixth-grade teacher, she said during the candidate forum. Her website touts endorsements from the Culinary Union, the Teamsters Union, the NSEA and EASA.
Jshauntae "Jai" Marshall
Marshall has a background in health care administration and finance, her campaign website states. She co-founded an antiracism parental group, “1865 No Racism in Schools,” in response to a recent threatened school shooting at Arbor View High School targeting nine black students, one of which was her son. During the candidate forum, she said she wants to advocate for children’s equity, diversity and inclusion and bring a parental voice to the school board.
Amanda Kennedy
Kennedy is a former spokesperson for the school district. According to her Facebook page, she continues to work in public relations and marketing and has more than 15 years of experience as a public servant overseeing budgets and “bringing people together.” Her background in “high-level policymaking,” disaster response and education policy would help the school district navigate the challenges it now faces, she said during the candidate forum.
Liberty Leavitt
Leavitt taught social studies at A-TECH High School, a magnet school in central Las Vegas, and then served as magnet theme coordinator at the school, she said during the candidate forum. She later worked as an administrator at CCSD’ School Community Partnership Program, which oversees partnerships between the school district and businesses and other community entities. She now works at CORE, a nonprofit that assists “under-resources” children to reduce educational inequalities in the Las Vegas Valley. Her diverse experience in many levels of education sets her apart from other candidates, her campaign website states.
Anand Nair
Nair is a Marines Corps veteran who served in the Iraq War and has a background in banking, finance and wealth management. He was a member of the Southern Nevada Regional Housing Authority Board and now sits on the Dignity Health Foundation Board. He has been endorsed by the Nevada Veterans Council, his campaign website states. His experience in banking would be helpful for the school board given the district’s current financial challenges, he said during the candidate forum.
Mike Rowe
Rowe taught in public schools in Cleveland and in Clark County, he said during the candidate forum. The district dismissed him in 2016 after he was arrested for “furnishing a dangerous drug without a prescription,” according to court documents. He sued the district, CCSD Police and the teachers union over the termination, but his claims were dismissed in district court. His priority for the school board is to reduce corruption, improve respect for employees and ensure monies are used most effectively for students, he said during the forum.
District B, representing the northern valley, including North Las Vegas and Mesquite
Kasina Douglass-Boone
Douglass-Boone has worked as a mental health advocate and founded a North Las Vegas-based nonprofit called Teaching and Uniting Ladies to Inspire Positive Success (TULIPS), according to her LinkedIn page. She did not attend the candidate forum.
Cortland Hill
Hill’s campaign website states that he is a “product of CCSD” and says he wants to create a new culture in the district that will help students achieve success. He did not attend the candidate forum.
Jeff Proffitt
Proffitt is a business manager at Sheet Metal Local 88. He previously served as the union’s training director for future sheet metal workers and wants to enhance trade-based educational opportunities in the school district, his campaign website states. A Moapa resident and Las Vegas native, he says he would bring both rural and urban perspectives to the district. His website touts a slew of union endorsements, including the Culinary Union, the Nevada Veterans Association, the Clark County Firefighters Union, the NSEA and CCEA.
Chris Shank
Shank is a U.S. Army veteran, describing himself as a former “soldier and medic” and a small-business owner, according to his campaign website. It is unclear what type of business he runs. He emphasizes transparency and accountability on his campaign website.
Ebony Evonne Sherman
Sherman did not attend the candidate forum. The Sun could not find a campaign website for her.
Jack Stanley
Stanley is a retired chaplain in the U.S. Air Force, according to his campaign website, having been based in the UK before working at Nellis Air Force Base. He has worked at Shadow Ridge High School in the Air Force Junior ROTC program. His website touts the importance of “computer science education for all” and mentions the need to improve the recruitment and hiring process in the district.
Bryan Wachter
Wachter is senior vice president of the Retail Association of Nevada and has served on the school organizational team at his children’s school, according to his campaign website. He was also a member of the school board’s budget advisory committee and now serves on the Superintendent’s Parent and Community Council, he said during the candidate forum. His priorities are improving transparency, communication and student achievement, his website states.
Katie Williams
Williams is a combat veteran and fitness instructor running for the school board to bring a “brave new conservative voice” to the nonpartisan body, her campaign website states. She has had experience meeting students in schools through her time in the military, she said during the candidate forum. The 2019 Ms. Nevada State winner, Williams was stripped of her crown after posting political content on her official pageant social media page, a violation of pageant rules, according to Ms. America. She also attracted attention in March after tweeting that she was continuing to eat at restaurants despite the threat of COVID-19 “because this is America. And I do what I want.” She is pro-school choice — in favor of charter schools — and pledges to donate her trustee stipend to the school district.
District C: Representing the central valley
Antonio Bowen
Bowen is an ordained minister and serves on the board of directors for the UNLV Foundation, he said during the candidate forum. He is running to stand up for students who feel like the district has not helped them, he said. He previously ran for the school board in 2016.
Barbara Dreyer
Dreyer has worked as a tutor and as a science teacher at Desert Pines High School, according to her campaign website. She left the school because she “did not feel supported” and felt there were issues there not being addressed, she said during the candidate forum. She pledges to fight for smaller class sizes, reduced reliance on testing and capital improvement at schools. She has been endorsed by the Culinary Union, the Nevada Veterans Council, AFL-CIO of Southern Nevada and other groups, her website states.
Carol Ferranti
Ferranti is a retired law enforcement officer and former consultant to the Clark County Family Services Department Child Haven and Foster Care program. If elected, she would prioritize teacher hiring and more effective collaboration with the community, her website states. Her inspiration for running is her son, who has mental and intellectual disabilities but was not immediately granted the IEP he needed, she said during the candidate forum.
Evelyn Garcia Morales
Morales previously worked at the YMCA of Las Vegas and is now executive director of the Fulfillment Fund Las Vegas (FFLV), a college attainment-focused nonprofit at Chaparral High School, her campaign website states. During the forum, she said her experience managing budgets and serving on an education board sets her apart from other candidates. She has been endorsed by Nevada state Sen. Yvanna Cancela and Assemblywoman and middle school teacher Selena Torres.
Tameka Henry
Henry has been a longtime advocate for Nevada Head Start, a federal program to improve school achievement for low-income families, she said during the candidate forum. She now serves as chair of the board of directors for Accelero Learning, a provider for Head Start programs in the valley. She also serves on the school organizational team at Bridger Middle School and as director of Mentorship For TULIPS, her website states.
Walter Jones III
Jones wants to work with the Nevada Legislature to “expand” the state’s funding formula and improve Title I schools, his campaign website states. During the candidate forum, he said he has been mentoring kids for two decades and wants to “get more dads involved in the school system.” He has served on CCSD’s bond oversight committee. He ran for city council in 2018 and school board in 2016.
Noel Searles
Noel Searles’ campaign website says he supports school choice, less emphasis on standardized testing, and more emphasis on trade schools. He did not attend the candidate forum. He previously ran for the Assembly in 2018.
District E: Representing the northwest valley, including Summerlin, Indian Springs and Mount Charleston
Elysa Arroyo
Arroyo is a second-grade teacher at Red Rock Elementary School. She serves on the school’s leadership team, as the theater department director and producer, and as the assistant robotics coach at the school. She also previously served as a public policy fellow for the Nevada Department of Education and was involved in the Governor’s Office of Workforce Development, her campaign website says.
Lola Brooks – Incumbent
Brooks has served on the board since 2016 and is currently the board president. She works as a student data analyst at a local, independently operated charter school, according to the Board of Trustees website. She is running to retain her seat because she feels it is important to have a knowledgeable and experienced board, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, she said during the forum.
Christopher Craig
Christopher Craig described himself as an entrepreneur during the candidate forum. He said the board should comprise “outsiders and insiders” and needs “fresh solutions and creative ideas.” The Sun could not find a candidate website for him.
Tiger Helgelien
Helgelien supports school choice and is against raising taxes for education, as the money does not always end up supporting students, his campaign website states. He serves on the school organizational team for Palo Verde High School and works as a Realtor. He has been endorsed by Las Vegas Councilwomen Victoria Seaman and Michele Fiore, his campaign website states. He ran for Nevada’s 3rd Congressional District in 2019 as a Republican.
Tracey Lewis
Lewis did not attend the candidate forum. The Sun was unable to find a candidate website for her.
Cristina Robertson
Robertson has experience in accounting and is running for school board to improve schools for her children, she said during the candidate forum. The Sun was unable to find a campaign website for her.
Alexis Salt
An eighth- and ninth-grade teacher in the school district, Salt has been a regular and vocal attendee of school board meetings for the past five years, her campaign website states. She supports a reduced emphasis on standardized testing for the benefit of teachers and students, and says her experience as a longtime teacher in the district would be helpful for the school board. She has been endorsed by the Culinary Union.
