LAS VEGAS (AP) - The Clark County School District, which includes Las Vegas, is reorganizing its staff and classrooms after falling $61 million short of projections following a decline in enrollment because of the coronavirus pandemic.
The situation could affect more than five dozen educators in the district as it tallies student enrollment and redistributes money for staff based on classroom ratios, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported.
If the school doesn’t have the students to justify the positions, there’s little recourse to save them, said John Vellardita, the executive director of the Clark County Education Association. School officials will look first for volunteers, before considering who is licensed and available for positions, then turn to seniority, he said.
Data from the district - one of the largest in the U.S. - showed an enrollment of 307,210 students this academic year. That’s down by about 10,000 compared to last year.
Chief Financial Officer Jason Goudie said the district used to receive funding based on a single-day enrollment count but now receives monthly and quarterly payments based on average daily attendance.
“Because we have less students, we therefore need less resources to service those students as well as the cost of supplies, we need less supplies,” Goudie said. “All of those pieces go in and offset some of those lost revenues.”
At Tyrone Thompson Elementary, officials expected about 600 students to show up when it reopened but only 400 did. This means five teachers will have to look for work elsewhere, and the remaining staffers will be reshuffled six weeks into the semester with larger classroom sizes.
Taylor Martin, who teaches at the school, said she’s concerned for students who will have to adjust to a new virtual learning schedule, new classmates and a new teacher.
“For the rug to be pulled underneath them and to have to start over, it’s not right any year, but especially this year,” she said.
Principal Robert Hinchliffe said the process affects everyone and “ultimately every classroom gets more kids.”
If missing students return after schools reopen, Hinchliffe said staff levels will be adjusted again.
Nevada reported 337 new cases of COVID-19 on Monday and no new deaths. The total number of confirmed cases in the state is 82,437. The death toll is 1,623.
For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some - especially older adults and people with existing health problems - it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia, and death.
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