Agenda lays out how Jara drama may unfold at next CCSD board meeting

Clark County School Board trustees next week could consider four items related to Superintendent Jesus Jara’s terminated contract and hostile work environment allegations, including one that could restore him to the post he lost two weeks ago.

The agenda for the Nov. 18 meeting, which was posted online Wednesday, indicates trustees will consider whether to rescind the termination of Jara’s contract, which they approved on a 4-3 vote on Oct. 28. If a majority of the seven trustees vote in favor, a new vote would be taken on whether to once again terminate his contract “for convenience.”

Other items include a possible vote on an interim superintendent selection process or appointment and whether to pick an outside expert to conduct an investigation into the hostile work environment allegations raised by Jara.

The Review-Journal reached out to all seven trustees Wednesday, and received comments from President Linda Cavazos and Trustees Lisa Guzman and Danielle Ford. Trustees Lola Brooks and Katie Williams declined to comment, while Vice Chair Irene Cepeda and Trustee Evelyn Garcia Morales did not respond. Jara’s attorney, John Bailey, didn’t respond to a request for comment.

Because the board members voted to terminate Jara’s contract “for convenience,” they didn’t need to provide a reason for his departure, and the four who voted for the motion — Cavazos, Cepeda, Ford and Guzman — have said little about their reasons. Brooks, Garcia Morales and Williams voted no.

Would Jara stay?

It’s not clear if Jara would be willing to remain on the job if the board votes to rescind his contract termination.

Jara or his attorneys communicate with board attorney Mary-Anne Miller, Cavazos said in response to a question about whether the board has any assurance he would be willing to stay on. She said she couldn’t provide further details because it’s a contractual matter.

Jara has been on the job since 2018. The board decided in a split vote in May to renew his contract through Jan. 15, 2023. Pending next week’s vote, he is slated to remain on the job until Dec. 1.

Two of the items for next week’s board meeting — reconsidering Jara’s contract termination and investigating hostile work environment allegations — were requested by Cepeda, Brooks and Garcia Morales.

Cepeda was the swing vote in deciding to terminate Jara’s contract last month. In the May vote, she voted to extend it.

In a Saturday statement, Cepeda said she voted to terminate the superintendent’s contract because of a “toxic environment” on the School Board, adding that she couldn’t see a path forward.

“I’ve lost my own voice trying to find middle ground and consensus in a board so painfully divided,” she said.

But Cepeda said “more and more troubling information” has come out about the process of Jara’s termination, tenure and work environment since the vote last month. “At minimum, I seek to correct the process,” she said.

Another agenda item will be discussion and possible action on “a process and/or appointment for an interim superintendent.”

If the board votes to rescind Jara’s contract termination, then the item would not be considered, Cavazos said.

During a Nov. 4 meeting, the board adjourned a meeting without deciding on a process for appointing an interim superintendent.

Ford said Wednesday that she requested the item and it was supported by Cavazos and Guzman.

Interim leader could be voted on

The item allows for the possibility of a vote to appoint an individual as interim superintendent, Ford said.

She also said she’s hoping maybe some of the items on the agenda next week are to allow trustees to get clarification, put things on the record or to ensure a process is done correctly.

Ford said there could be discussion only and no action.

“It could really just go several different ways,” she said.

The fourth item on the agenda calls for trustees to consider whether to select an “outside expert” to conduct an investigation into Jara’s hostile work environment allegations “at the executive and administrative levels” of the school district.

Cavazos said she hasn’t been given any recommendations of outside experts who would be considered. She said she expects there may be some reference materials related to the item posted on Monday at the earliest.

In a confidential letter Friday to the school district’s legal counsel — which the Review-Journal obtained from a source — Jara’s attorney said the superintendent is owed more than $657,000 for the remainder of his contract and an additional $2 million to settle alleged hostile work environment, retaliation, breach of contract and due process violations.

The letter alleges Cavazos, Guzman and Ford were particularly active in the harassment.

On Wednesday, Guzman told the Review-Journal she did not believe she played a role in creating a hostile work environment.

“I did not cause one and I know the law,” Guzman said. “I gave oversight suggestions, requested that the district follow specific laws in the best interest of kids, and kept a professional relationship with Dr. Jara. I do not think Dr. Jara meant me in the hostile work environment part of his letter.”

She said she’s the one trustee who won’t say anything against anyone on the board nor Jara.

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