It’s a rough beginning for Clark County School District as the year starts again, with a persistent lack of personnel and an ongoing disagreement concerning teacher arrangements. It was confirmed not long ago that there were more than one thousand empty teaching roles. To put this in perspective, there were approximately 1,100 openings due to a lack of staff.
Although this statistic is concerning enough on its own, others feel that the number of unfilled positions may be even larger due to temporary employees taking up tasks ordinarily conducted by professional license holders.
Clark County teacher contract
In a bid to bring much-needed attention and aid to the teacher situation, educators in Clark County have taken up hands and organized several rallies before and after school hours during the week. With these events, they hope to capture the energy from families in the community and garner awareness for what needs to be accomplished; ultimately signing off on an agreeable teacher contract that will provide students with the best educational experience.
The underlying issue behind all these matters is how staff shortages have led to burnout in the district, hence why they must find a viable solution for everyone’s benefit.
Clark County special education classes
An interview with Angela Poole, a teacher at a school in Mesquite, demonstrated the reason for the calls for action and further protests. Angela says, “I started teaching at Clark County five years ago, and during that time I have had to go to the emergency room twice from situations in the autism unit because we were not properly staffed,” In other words, with an inadequate teacher-student ratio the students –especially those in special education classes- are more vulnerable to quality & safety issues.
CCSS superintendent Response
When the CCSS superintendent, Dr. Jesus Jara, was asked about the steps taken to retain staff and address this issue, he stated that their main priority is creating an equitable salary schedule for teachers, one in which their education and experience are duly recognized so they can get paid for it accordingly. He said this and other strategies are being devised as a possible remedy to the current situation within the district.
Kamilah, a local parent and educator, elaborates that teachers have the choice to opt for schools that offer more administrative support as opposed to those with higher population rates of students from underprivileged backgrounds. This means if teachers can, they should choose more suited options that are better for them and their students., which of course, will leave schools in needy areas struggling.
“At the long run, we still love our students. However, there are teachers that may not have the ideal environment to help their students succeed,” Angela Rawls, a teacher at Lied STEM Academy, shares. “Absolutely some teachers will opt for different schools, as they need to sustain themselves too.”
The Clark County Education Association (CCEA) has given the district a set deadline of August 26th to either present an agreeable contract or will resort to what the union leaders refer to as “work actions.” This means if negotiations fail, teachers in the area may take necessary steps such as strikes or boycotts.
Nevada Autism Support
As a result of all this impending commotion, families are worried about ways to guarantee their children’s educational stability. Nevada Autism Center is here to help! Through providing in-home therapy, respite care, and family education services, Nevada Autism looks to create a safe space for those affected by the crisis.
Moreover, NAC also looks beyond their services and advocates for legislation that aids Autistic children and families. With the support of NA, these kids can excel with flying colors- contact us now for premier Autism treatment.
