CCSD School Board votes for new leadership for 2026

The Clark County School Board has a new president.

Trustee Emily Stevens was elected by the School Board to be its new president for 2026 in a sparsely attended meeting Wednesday that also saw two other board members elected into new officer roles during the work session.

Stevens beat out Trustee Brenda Zamora in a narrow 4-3 vote.

Trustee Irene Bustamante Adams, the board’s president in 2025, will replace Zamora and serve as vice president this year. And the board voted for Trustee Lydia Dominguez as clerk in another 4-3 vote, removing Trustee Tameka Henry from the role.

The president’s job is to schedule and lead School Board meetings, enforce rules among the board’s members and represent the board to outside parties, among other duties. The clerk works to keep accurate records of the School Board’s proceedings, and the vice president fills in for the president or clerk if neither are present.

Trustee Lorena Biassotti nominated Stevens for president, saying the School Board could benefit from her intelligence and efficiency in the role. After Bustamante Adams declined nominations from Zamora and Trustee Linda Cavazos to retain her role as president, Henry nominated Zamora.

Zamora and Stevens, one seat between them, appeared to have a friendly conversation as trustees chattered in hushed tones while the paper votes were being counted.

Stevens got votes from Biassotti, Bustamante Adams, Dominguez and herself. Despite having only one year on the School Board, Stevens cited her experience as a businesswoman when she made her case for president to her colleagues.

“I understand finance very well, and one of the things that we are commissioned to do is informed oversight over a $9 billion budget,” Stevens said following her nomination. “My goal would be to keep us on the path that (Bustamante Adams) got us on and continue to move us forward and collaborate with all of you to do that.”

Voting for vice president was more decisive as Bustamante Adams was the only trustee to accept a nomination to the position. However, Henry and Cavazos both abstained from voting for Bustamante Adams, making her win a 5-0 affair.

“Whatever capacity that I could serve, nothing is beneath me,” Bustamante Adams said after being nominated. “I will accept the nomination if the group wants me to lead in that capacity.”

For clerk, Cavazos and Trustee Isaac Barron both nominated Henry, who held the role through 2025 in what was her first year on the School Board. Stevens, after being voted president, nominated Dominguez for clerk.

The vote for clerk split down the same lines as the vote for president. Dominguez beat Henry 4-3 with support from Biassotti, Bustamante Adams, Stevens and herself.

“I am here to work, whether I’m as a trustee or on the leadership,” Dominguez said following her nomination.

Contact Spencer Levering at slevering@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0253.