Teachers look for positives in district chief’s retirement

When Clark County School District Superintendent Pat Skorkowsky announced on Sept. 7 that he will retire at the end of June, he told an audience that his departure would allow him to address “problems — and problem-makers — head on, without holding back.”

Southwest Las Vegas teachers and parents are cautiously hopeful that he will follow through and guide the district through a budget shortfall originally estimated at $70 million to $80 million. The district had asked principals to prepare a budget for school-level cuts but later halted the process after it discovered an accounting error by the central office. Schools mistakenly were asked to cut too deeply, the district said, asking for more time to provide accurate figures.

“I hope he goes out swinging,” said Spring Valley High School teacher Jill Jaeger. She cited Nevada’s low per-pupil spending as a problem. Nevada spends less per pupil than 45 other states and the District of Columbia, at an average of $8,615, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The average per-pupil spending in the U.S. is $11,392.

“I hope he finally has the ability to state the actual issues,” she said. “Instead of playing politics, instead of keeping the School Board happy and the teachers union happy.”

Many business leaders praised the superintendent’s decision and said they weren’t surprised, while others, including the administrators union, are calling for an interim leader to replace Skorkowsky.

Orchestra teacher Kyle Martin, who has taught at Spring Valley for 12 years, agreed with Jaeger.

“I honestly feel like (Skorkowsky) has been pretty upstanding during this whole thing. … I feel like he’s done a lot of good for our district, especially from who we had prior to him.”

Former Superintendent Dwight Jones, citing personal reasons, resigned amid a budget crisis in 2013, halfway through a four-year contract.

Jaeger believes that rather than become a lame duck, Skorkowsky will be able to make tough decisions because he doesn’t have to worry about whether he’ll have a job.

Parents pitch in

Mother-of-five Carolyn Gourlie is a member of William Wright Elementary School’s parent-teacher organization and school organizational team. She has four children who attend Wright; her eldest daughter is in second grade. Gourlie said she has witnessed a drastic reduction in school supplies afforded to teachers this school year.

“Everything could fit into a small grocery sack,” Gourlie said, “and that was supplies for their classroom for the year.”

Wright also eliminated its three kindergarten aids this year, Gourlie said. Those were employees who assisted teachers with monitoring the playground, helping small groups of students with classwork and walking students to lunch and recess.

Now Gourlie and other parents, including PTO leader Natalie Gifford, have changed the goals and organization of their group. Instead of just holding fundraisers, they’re holding supply drives to help teachers. And parents have volunteered to monitor the playground and the lunchroom.

“This is new,” Gifford said. “In fact, we were told before when I tried to come in that we weren’t allowed (to fill those roles).”

Gourlie understands the superintendent’s decision to retire, she said, and expects finger pointing to continue the rest of the school year.

“Maybe it’s good that he steps out … I think it’s going to get ugly,” Gourlie said. “I can’t blame him. It’s not like he stepped into a perfect district.”

Contact Madelyn Reese at mreese@viewnews.com or 702-383-0497. Follow @MadelynGReese on Twitter.