CCSD releases Jara social media records in response to union suit

The Clark County Education Association, which represents more than 16,000 licensed employees, filed a petition last month in District Court seeking to force the district to turn over Jara’s social media account records.

In November, a reply on X from an account under Jara’s name referred to CCEA President Marie Neisess as a “mistress,” the union alleged in court documents. That account is no longer active.

The union also alleges that Jara and/or Tod Story, the district’s chief communications officer, used a separate burner account to defame the union’s leaders.

In response to the lawsuit, the district agreed to turn over records by Monday.

The district didn’t respond to a Las Vegas Review-Journal request for comment Tuesday.

The union wrote in a statement Tuesday to the Review-Journal: “CCSD’s defense is that the Jara account was hacked and they claim they have no knowledge of the burner account.”

“The initial release of information from CCSD is being reviewed by CCEA’s attorneys to determine whether the District has met CCEA’s information request,” the union wrote. “With that said, we have a March 19 court date on this matter.”

The Review-Journal filed a public records request seeking the documents that would be disclosed as part of the court case, and the district provided the documents Monday night.

In its response to the records request, the district wrote that “limited redactions” were made in the documents.

“Confidential and privileged information is not required to be produced under the public records law,” the district wrote.

Jara submitted his resignation last week, and his last day is Feb. 21.

The Clark County School Board will consider three agenda items Wednesday related to his departure, including whether to amend his employment agreement and whether to appoint Deputy Superintendent Brenda Larsen-Mitchell as the district’s next top leader.

Union leaders have called the timing of Jara’s resignation “suspicious,” citing the pending lawsuit over his social media accounts.

The U.S. and Nevada departments of education are also investigating the district’s use of federal COVID-19 relief money for recruiting trips to beach destinations.

What’s included in records?

The records released Monday are an archive of data from Jara’s account on X, under the name @SuptJaraCCSD.

The archive was created Dec. 8, the day after the CCEA filed a public records request.

The union’s request was for “all records and information relating to all X/Twitter accounts Dr. Jesus F. Jara used in the course and scope of his employment at the Clark County School District,” including the @SuptJaraCCSD account and the burner account, Luis @Luis54681428, according to court documents.

The released records show posts, retweets and replies that the account made between summer 2018 and summer 2021.

The release does not appear to include the November reply at the center of the teachers union’s court petition.

The records also don’t include documentation related to the alleged burner account.

Jara’s account on X was created in May 2015, about three years before he became superintendent, using an email address that’s redacted from documents.

The screen name was changed four times between 2016 and 2018, with references to the CCSD added in 2018, the year Jara became the district’s top leader.

In total, there were 6,888 posts, and five accounts were blocked.

Some posts include pictures and videos from high school graduation ceremonies, information about COVID-19 testing and vaccinations, summer school information, expressing gratitude to the Nevada Legislature and posts commemorating occasions like Juneteenth, Memorial Day, Pride Month and Teacher Appreciation Week.

Records also include an account access history showing the dates and times there was a login between October and December.

Contact Julie Wootton-Greener at jgreener@reviewjournal.com. Follow @julieswootton on X.