Clark County campus security monitors to see 48% increase in starting pay
The Clark County School Board will give pay raises to campus security monitors as part of an agreement between the school district and the Education Support Employees Association to move the position to a higher pay grade.
Campus security monitors will now make $21.67 to $30.51 per hour — up from the current range of $14.66 to $20.63 — a 48% increase in starting pay.
The change will take effect at the beginning of the second pay period following the agreement being signed. It will cost the district about $4 million annually.
After just a few minutes of discussion and one public comment, the board approved the change 5-0 on Thursday.
Trustee Brenda Zamora wasn’t in attendance. Trustee Lisa Guzman abstained from voting since she works for the Nevada State Education Association, the parent organization over the support employees union.
Trustee Linda Cavazos said the pay reclassification has been a long time coming.
Campus security monitors are not only important to students, but to teachers and support professionals, Cavazos said, saying they’re like a first responder.
On Monday, a campus security monitor was injured outside at Von Tobel Middle School in northeast Las Vegas after being hit by a stray bullet from a shooting a few blocks away, police said.
Sunrise Mountain High School student Jessie Rios, 18, was arrested Tuesday and faces two dozen felony counts.
Jan Giles, president of the Education Support Employees Association, told trustees that students can’t focus on learning if they don’t feel safe in schools.
Campus security monitors are the first line of protection against weapons, drugs and fights, she said.
Giles called the pay increase well deserved and overdue.
There are difficulties in recruiting and retaining campus security monitors due to the low pay that’s not competitive in the industry, but Giles said she hopes all positions will be filled after the pay increase.
The district has about 412 campus security monitors and approximately 80 vacancies, Giles told the Review-Journal earlier this week.
Giles told trustees that what happened this week at Von Tobel was tragic. Schools can’t prevent a stray bullet from the surrounding area, but can definitely be prepared if there’s a random act of violence on campuses, she said.
In a written public comment, one of Von Tobel’s campus security monitors Corey Mumpfort wrote that monitors are on the frontline and are often first responders in crisis situations on campuses.
For most people, the risk far outweighs the reward and if changes aren’t made to current wages, more campus security monitors will leave, Mumpfort wrote. “A lot of us are working more than one job year round to be able to afford to pay our monthly bills.”
Campus security monitors put their lives on the line daily, Mumpfort wrote. “We walk into school each day not knowing what the day holds but with the mindset we will do our very best to keep the children, staff and campus safe.”
Contact Julie Wootton-Greener at jgreener@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2921. Follow @julieswootton on Twitter.