‘We have a lot of work to do’: Jhone Ebert picked to lead CCSD

The Clark County School Board unanimously selected Jhone Ebert on Thursday to be the Clark County School District’s next leader.

Ebert will leave her post as Nevada’s superintendent of public instruction to assume the role as the head of the nation’s fifth-largest school district.

“I’ve got my running shoes, and we have a lot of work to do,” Ebert said when asked about her plan for her first day after Thursday’s meeting. “It’s not just a me thing, it’s a we thing, and so making sure that we’re all moving in the same direction. We have a legislative session going on, we’ve got things going on at the national level.”

Ebert will be the first woman to permanently lead the school district. Brenda Larsen-Mitchell has served as the interim superintendent since former Superintendent Jesus Jara resigned in February 2024. Larsen-Mitchell announced in December that she would not put her name forward for the permanent position.

Ebert brings decades of experience at the school district — and across the state — to the role.

She has served as state superintendent since 2019, under both Democratic Gov. Steve Sisolak and Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo. Her CCSD experience dates back to 1990, beginning as a substitute teacher and then as a classroom teacher. She then served in several administrative roles, including assistant superintendent for curriculum and professional development from 2007 to 2009 and chief innovation and productivity officer from 2013 to 2015.

She also served as the senior deputy commissioner for education policy in New York state from 2015 to 2019.

Ebert’s selection came in the final stage of a multi-round process. The next step will be for the school district to negotiate a contract, which will include determining Ebert’s start date.

More than 40 candidates applied for the role, and four were selected to interview in late February. Ebert, Nevada State High School charter school CEO Jesse Welsh and Ben Shuldiner, a superintendent in Lansing, Michigan, emerged. They went on to a community forum and final round of interviews earlier this week. They also met with legislators, business groups, union heads and administrators.

‘We’re basically at a crisis situation’

From the very beginning of Thursday’s meeting, several trustees spoke in support of Ebert.

Trustee Isaac Barron, who does not have voting rights on the board, said that Ebert would bring stability during what would likely be a very difficult time for the school district.

“Right now, we’re basically at a crisis situation,” Barron said. “We have no idea what’s coming to us from the federal government.”

Public support was no different — the vast majority of people who spoke during the public comment session in Thursday’s meeting, held at the Greer Education Center in Las Vegas, were in support of Ebert’s experience and ability to lead the school district.

Several public commenters highlighted Ebert’s ability to work with people across the political spectrum and the relationships she already has with legislators.

Her application had a letter of recommendation from Lombardo, who, in addition to complimenting her data and policy qualifications, wrote: “Jhone has the rare ability to connect with others, no matter who they are or how many stripes they have on their sleeve.”

The Clark County Education Association teachers union, which refrained from a public endorsement of any one candidate, congratulated Ebert on her new role.

Union President Marie Neisess said that it became more and more clear throughout the process that Ebert was the most qualified candidate, especially when she heard from legislators the last time she was in Carson City.

“We have important things coming up in Carson City during the legislative session, and she’s ready to just fit into that role because she has that background,” Neisess said. “I believe we’re going to have a collaborative relationship working to ensure that we meet the needs, not only of the students, but the staff here in CCSD.”

Prioritizing accountability

Throughout her campaign for the position, Ebert emphasized her focus on accountability.

“I know we are great,” Ebert said during Monday’s community forum. “I know there are things that are broken and trust has been lost.”

As state superintendent, Ebert worked with Lombardo to assign a compliance monitor to the school district after it struggled with a potential budget deficit this fall. Prior to that, she sent a long list of questions demanding answers from Larsen-Mitchell about the budget errors.

She told the School Board that she brings what schools need most: the ability to “achieve impact at scale,” or make critical changes in large organizations.

Of all the finalists, Ebert had the most experience working on a large scale — Nevada’s education budget is $6 billion, and New York’s is $26 billion, according to her application.

On Thursday, Trustee Lisa Satory called Ebert’s experience “unrivaled.”

‘A transformative, collaborative leader’

Ebert also emphasized the importance of balancing empowering teachers and principals with tools as well as ensuring accountability.

“As I was going across the school districts, the teachers did not feel like they were being heard or seen, and that they didn’t have the autonomy to do the work in their own classroom,” Ebert said Thursday. “I think that’s really going to be key in making sure that we remove all of the barriers so that teachers know their leadership matters each and every day.”

She also said that not every school was the same, and that in solving for teacher vacancies, it would be important to listen to educators.

Neisses said she is excited for the union to negotiate a contract with Ebert, which it hopes to do before the start of the next school year.

Ebert has offered several ideas for improving student achievement, including delaying start times and switching to a more competency-based learning model.

She said Thursday that Nevada ranks in the bottom five nationwide for time students spend in the classroom and wanted to make sure students had full days of learning.

When asked about issues in special education in the school district, Ebert said outsiders should be coming to the classroom to see what was going on, and how the district could improve. As for the increasing number of lawsuits on the issue, Ebert emphasized the need to get to the root cause of the issues.

Ebert said she wants to serve as CCSD superintendent because she knows the school district can do better and also expressed that she hopes it could one day be a “destination school district.”

“I am a transformative, collaborative leader,” Ebert said.

Contact Katie Futterman at kfutterman@reviewjournal.com. Follow @ktfutts on X and @katiefutterman.bsky.social.