ESEA 10.14.21 CCSD Board of Trustees Public Comment

Madam President, Superintendent Jara, Members of the Board,

The Education Support Employees Association (ESEA) represents thousands of professional support employees throughout Clark County.

The FACES program has been in our Title 1 schools to help students and families who are the most in need in our community.  This department has twenty-nine minority support professionals, mostly women and longtime employees of CCSD.  They were given a sudden notice that their position is being eliminated and they are being surplused. These professionals are all key to our Community Engagement Department, they are the backbone of the successful FACEs program.  

The families, school administrators, students, and professional staff have been left in the dark to what the plan is for this department.  Then they were told not to tell the parents, to not schedule any additional trainings, and to not discuss with the community.  It seems the District has “plans” but we shouldn’t have to try and guess what the plans are and the communities most affected by this shouldn’t hear about it by accident.  We owe our children, families, and staff more.

From the documents ESEA saw in a virtual meeting, CCSD is adding another Director and promoting current Directors.  The Department will go from 29 hands on professionals to 9.  CCSD is also claiming that more in-home services will be provided.  This is impossible without outsourcing and privatizing the work now being done within the school district.

CCSD has proudly claimed that 80 percent of the federal dollars are committed to students.  These dollars were to include wrap-around and community services.  The FACES program is exactly what CCSD claims it is funding.  

Routinely ESEA is told that funds aren’t available, but we hear funds are available to upgrade Director positions and add Director positions.  But cuts are made in the hands-on services to children and families.

Along with my statement today, I am submitting at least a dozen comments from parents of the FACES program calling on the District to do the right thing.  Keep this successful program intact.   Keep the hands-on services to the families and children in the schools with our professional staff, who are also important role models in their communities.