CCSD has many teaching, other vacancies heading into school year

The Clark County School District is facing widespread teaching and staff vacancies with less than two weeks before a new school year begins, district officials said Wednesday.

The openings are for a number of different types of jobs, said Steve Flak, director of recruitment for the school district.

“It’s pretty much spread across the spectrum there,” he said.

Flak provided an update on recruitment during a school district back-to-school information session Wednesday for reporters at Bell Elementary School in Las Vegas. The event featured representatives from the school district’s food service, transportation, human resources and police departments.

Flak didn’t have data on the current number of open teaching and staff vacancies.

The Review-Journal submitted a public records request to the school district on July 20 seeking data about teaching vaccines compared with previous years, but it hasn’t yet received the information.

As of Wednesday, the district’s hiring website includes 784 listings for licensed/certified job positions, 387 for support professionals and 25 for administrative professionals.

The school district is holding a job fair from 8 a.m.-1 p.m. Tuesday at Western High School. It will include on-site interviews and immediate hiring for qualified individuals.

The effort to hire more employees comes in the homestretch as the district prepares for a new school year. More than 300,000 students will return to campuses Aug. 9 for full-time in-person classes.

In total, 12 schools will offer a full-time distance learning option. About 11,800 students — 5 percent of the total student body in the district — are participating, according to registration numbers shared with the School Board earlier this month.

Kindergarten through 12th grade students also have the option of enrolling in Nevada Learning Academy at CCSD, the school district’s online school.

School board President Linda Cavazos told reporters Wednesday the school board isn’t currently scheduled to consider any additional COVID-19 mitigation measures before school starts.

The district announced Tuesday it will require face masks for all employees and students inside school buildings and on school buses.

Other topics addressed at Wednesday’s briefing included:

Transportation

There are no major changes to school busing for the upcoming school year, said Jennifer Vobis, executive director of transportation.

Route information for families is available on the school district’s website or via the CCSD Onboard mobile app.

School buses will operate at full capacity, but face masks will be required for students and employees, Vobis said.

After each load of passengers, bus drivers will wipe down seats and frequently touched surfaces with disinfecting wipes, she said. Nighttime disinfecting will also occur.

Food service

All students can receive free school breakfasts and lunches this school year thanks to a U.S. Department of Agriculture waiver, said Christina Saheb, a registered dietician for the school district.

For students who are opting for distance learning, there will be about 10 sites where meals can be picked up, Saheb said. Meals will be distributed on Wednesdays and Fridays beginning 15 to 30 minutes after school is out. Students will receive multiple meals during each pickup day.

More information is available at ccsd.nutrislice.com.

School police

A lot of Clark County School District Police Department officers have received mental health training over the summer, including crisis intervention training, said Bryan Zink, public information officer for the department.

Zink said at least 310,000 students will be returning to campuses — a much larger number than the springtime when a larger portion of students opted to continue with distance learning.

He said he wants to remind parents to take a little extra time and use caution when dropping off their children at school. And, he said, between 1,500 and 1,700 school buses will be in operation.

The school district police department will work with local law enforcement agencies for traffic enforcement in school zones, Zink said.

Contact Julie Wootton-Greener at jgreener@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2921. Follow @julieswootton on Twitter.