By james art LAS VEGAS, Nev. (FOX5) – The Clark County School Board of Trustees got an update on the district’s budget deficit Thursday night and had a chance to ask questions about it. Earlier this month, the district reported a $10.9 million shortfall and fired its chief financial officer.
“I’m still trying to think through … a budget deficit from $50 million to $20 million, to $12 to $10.9,” explained Trustee Isaac Barron, who was appointed by the city of North Las Vegas. As Barron sought answers from Interim Superintendent Dr. Brenda Larsen-Mitchell and her staff, Board President Evelyn Garcia Morales hung him up, his microphone muted.
“This is not an inquisition, this is not a capture,” Garcia Morales said.
“It’s not an answer, there are no numbers, there are no numbers. There is no reference to anything,” Barron continued, even though his microphone was off.
“We will move forward,” Garcia-Morales replied.
For some trustees, what is happening with the budget remains unclear even after an update from Dr. Larsen-Mitchell.
“In terms of our potential central budget deficit, it remains approximately $10 million,” Larsen-Mitchell revealed.
Larsen-Mitchell said “process improvement work” is underway to get the district’s finances back on track.
In response to Governor Joe Lombardo’s request to learn more about the budget, Dr. Larsen-Mitchell revealed that three individuals representing the state are now reviewing the CCSD budget.
“Paul Johnson CFO of the White Pine School District, Tom Ciesynski CFO of the Washoe School District retired and Jim McIntosh CFO of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority and former CFO of CCSD, we are really, really excited to work with them, Larsen-Mitchell shared.
The district said it plans to absorb the potential budget shortfall by using unallocated funds. An amended final budget is scheduled to be presented to the board on Dec. 12, but the impact of the deficit on schools is being felt now.
“Do we know how many staff positions … were cut?” Trustee Brenda Zamora asked.
“Thirty-six licensed professionals were sent in excess, meaning they were out of budget, 41 maintenance professionals … and then five administrators,” a CCSD official responded.
On Thursday night, CCSD trustees also approved a special board meeting on Wednesday. They will be interviewing ten people to fill former trustee Katie Williams’ vacancy for the last few months of her term. Williams was asked to resign from the school board by the Clark County District Attorney after learning she lived in Nebraska. According to the agenda, they plan to be sworn in immediately after interviewing the candidates next week.
The retirement of Katie Williams left her district without representation, and as a result the search for a new superintendent has been delayed. The future makeup of the CCSD Board of Trustees will be decided by the next regular school board meeting after the election, as there are four seats up for grabs in this election.
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