Nevada superintendent outlines goals for public schools

Taking a highly political job at age 75 has an advantage - freedom, said Nevada's new Superintendent of Public Schools James Guthrie, who revealed five changes in store for the nation's bottom-ranked educational system in a speech Tuesday.

"When you get there, 75, you don't care. You say what you want," he said, explaining that the job is not a steppingstone for him. He doesn't have to worry that making waves will hurt his career. It's a chance to do the job right, no ulterior motives.

But Guthrie, speaking at a luncheon hosted by conservative think tank Nevada Policy Research Institute at the Las Vegas Country Club, has come to realize in his three months on the job that change will be gradual and slowed by red tape, he said.

"I'm much more humble than three months ago," he said, speaking six days after the national Kids Count report ranked Nevada dead last in public education.

Carolyn Edwards, a veteran board member for the Clark County School District, was glad to hear Guthrie is cognizant of the learning curve despite his accomplished career in education.

"He has a lot to learn about how the state works," she said, mentioning that she is "happy to hear" his five goals.

And Guthrie will be accountable to Gov. Brian Sandoval, who - for the first time - appointed the superintendent and can replace him at any time. But the governor is on board with Guthrie's five goals and will push legislation in the next session to support them, Guthrie said.

Guthrie's five goals are the following:

Goal One - Construct a system to track each individual student through 12th grade, college and career. Guthrie said some have doubted the feasibility of this, but it has been done in Florida.

Edwards supported the idea but noted it would take money in a state that has been cutting education funding.

Goal Two - Students shouldn't advance to the next grade just because they put in the time but because they showed enough progress, he said, mentioning third-graders who can't read but go on to fourth grade.

"They ought to stop there until they can read," which isn't the case now, Guthrie said, earning a round of applause.

Fifty-eight percent of third-graders were reading at grade level in 2011, according to the state's most recent standardized test results.

Changing the system would take legislative approval, he said.

Guthrie also advocated a new choice for 11th-graders with enough credits to graduate. Let them go to college and give them the per-pupil funding that would have gone to their schools for their 12th grade year to help pay their college tuition.

Per-pupil expenses average $8,515 in Nevada, according to the Nevada Department of Education's Report Card.

Goal Three - Make the teaching profession more attractive in Nevada by paying the top 10 percent of teachers a lucrative salary. He hesitated to pin a dollar amount on that salary, having received flak for a statement in June that "in tomorrow's world, the best teachers earn $200,000."

Goal Four - Blend computer courses with traditional teaching, which can boost student performance while increasing class sizes. He referenced Alliance Technology and Math Science High School in Los Angeles, where classes of 48 students work on computers most of the day.

Goal Five - Don't put charter schools at a disadvantage but even the playing field, giving students options. In Nevada, critics have said charter schools are funded to fail because the state provides the same per-pupil funding as it does to school districts though charters aren't provided facilities.

"It will be interesting to see what turns into reality," Clark County School Board member Lorraine Alderman said.

Contact reporter Trevon Milliard at tmilliard@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0279.