“We applaud legislators and the governor for focusing on raising Nevada’s investment in education this legislative session to compensate our employees and recruit new ones to the profession. This is exactly what I have been calling for since my State of the Schools address last month and the year prior,” said Superintendent Dr. Jesus F. Jara. “As the other superintendents across the state and I continue saying, without optimal education funding levels this session, we will not be able to retain our teachers and support professionals and recruit to fill vacancies plus provide the wrap-around services that ultimately serve our students in their academic success.”
The Clark County School District (CCSD) continues to work with Nevada State College (NSC) on a teacher pipeline, having invested $3 million in December 2022 to provide scholarships for students to accelerate and complete their teaching degrees. Nevada must ultimately fund the teacher pipeline through its higher education institutions because regular attrition rates require CCSD to hire 2,000 teachers yearly, while Nevada only produces 900 annually.
The District agrees all educators, administrators, and support professionals deserve to be compensated more than they are currently compensated. While the announced $250 million dedicated proposal for salaries is commendable, it does not cover the totality of salaries and benefits for the state’s education-related staff and must be ongoing, or it will be unsustainable in future years. In its 2022 recommendations, the legislature created the Commission on School Funding projected a 10% increase in base salaries would cost $325,180,100. Additionally, this balance will need to be adjusted for the increase in PERS contribution rates, effective July 1, 2023.
CCSD looks forward to working with legislators, the governor, our employees, and families to advocate for optimally funding education in this session. We are also eager to discuss accountability regarding raising student achievement and performance while holding everyone accountable for delivering those results.
The Pupil-Centered Funding Plan is the state’s vehicle for funding education–which must be funded optimally–it covers the costs of educating our students, including the salaries of teachers, administrators, and support staff. The weighted funding (EL, At-Risk, and GATE) is not subject to negotiation according to state law.
