Running Head: ARTIFACT 1: REVIEW OF SCHOOL DISTRICT TRUSTEES BOARD

MEETING 1

Artifact 1: Review of School District Trustees Board Meeting

Deidra Marie Glaser

College of Southern Nevada

ARTIFACT 1:REVIEW OF SCHOOL DISTRICT TRUSTEES BOARD MEETING 2

Abstract

The School District Board of Trustees meeting on March 22, 2018, covered several serious

problems on the agenda pertaining to school policies and practices. One issue was filed by

Deputy Superintendent Kim Wooden, who also filed with the Nevada Equal Rights Commission

and U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. D.S. Wooden accuses trustee Kevin

Child of inappropriate behavior, and of disregarding a Settlement Agreement and an Amended

Employment Contract. The board voted to approve the settlement, and on amending the contract

in a four to three vote. It is an important case for future teachers to study because it pertains to

teachers and administrators rights about feeling comfortable and safe within the work

environment, and it shows how litigation is handled within the school district regarding these

issues. The difficulty and interesting aspect of this case is that the complaint is regarding the

inappropriate behavior from an elected official, specifically against first term Board of Trustees

member Kevin Child. Many of the members felt like the rulings of this case would be a major

reflection on the values of the school board, and considered this a topic of major importance. The

specific details of this case also covers law pertaining to discrimination, harassment, employment

contracts, and inappropriate behavior within the workplace.

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Review of the School District Trustees Board Meeting

Thursday afternoon, people finally begin taking their seats around six o’clock, while

Trustees Board members where shuffling through papers, and many others were getting ready for

the night’s planned discussions ahead. The School Districts Board of Trustees members

included: President, Deanna L. Wright; Vice-President, Carolyn Edwards; Clerk, Lola Brooks;

and members Linda P. Cavazos, Kevin L. Child, Chris Garvey, and Linda E. Young. The District

Superintendent Pat Skorkowsky was also there. The board began by approving the agenda that

was set, followed by having a public comment period, and then proceed to discusses the items

that were on the agenda. There were many different items discussed that were impactful to the

educational system such as harassment charges, substitute and teaching employment contracts,

school safety, maintenance, security, and including how to direct the Superintendent on

implementing a new policy on gender diversity in compliance with new state law.

One topic that came up that interested me was section 3.35 of the school board agenda.

The plaintiff was Kim Wooden, the Deputy Superintendent, who had filed a charge with the

Nevada Equal Rights Commission and U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission,

accusing trustee Child of inappropriate behavior. Ms.Wooden claimed to feel “unsafe” and

“uncomfortable.” According the how the board was describing the situation, she felt unable to

attend board meetings and other work related meetings without feeling uncomfortable. The

details of the employment contract were to remain confidential until after the hearing, and after

the vote had been passed. The original filed complaint was with the NERC, and requested both

parties settle the dispute among themselves before the investigations. However, in general,

NERC did not make an officially judgement call, but did encourage the parties to work it out.
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The parties were not able to successfully work things out among themselves which is why the

School District in now dealing with the motion.

The interesting part in dealing with this case is that it is dealing with an elected official.

Normally when teachers or administrators file charges of harassment, the charges can be looked

into by a supervisor, a higher up, or some unaffiliated third party. In this case, there is not really

a higher up because elected officials and trustees do not really have a supervisor. So unless it’s

the trustee who is the alleged bad actor everyone else has a boss or someone higher up who can

investigate said allegations or said “bad actor,” but in this case the accusations are against first

term trustee board member Kevin Child (CCSD, 2018). For the record, trustee member Child

was at this board meeting, and did say if the board voted to pass the motion he would sue for

slander. He was also not considered a party in this vote.

This is not trustee members Child’s first time being accused of inappropriate behavior at

the workplace. After doing some research of my own, around 2016, I discovered trustee Child

was actually banned from showing up to CCSD schools unannounced, without a written request,

and without the approval of the Superintendent. The board member was apparently walking into

classrooms and schools unannounced, and making unnecessary comments to teachers and staff.

According to the article called, “CCSD bars Trustee Kevin Child from making school visits”, by

the ​Las Vegas: Review Journal​, “The Clark County Education Association claims it has fielded

numerous complaints about Child disrupting classes and making inappropriate comments at

schools.... CCEA Executive Director John Vellardita said Child has made “inappropriate

unprofessional gestures” to employees, particularly female” (Pak-havery, 2017). Oddly, these

claims of trustee Child’s inappropriate behavior have been floating around for a while now.
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However, according to a different ​Las Vegas: Review Journal​ article, released last Wednesday,

“Clark County School District trustee Kevin Child said that it’s a shame the district intends to

settle a workplace harassment complaint against him, reiterating his contention that he’s never

done anything ​to make anyone feel uncomfortable in my life​” (Delaney, 2018). In conclusion,

Child denies these harassment claims against him.

According to the textbook, ​Legal Right of Teachers and Students, ​sexual harassment

generally refers to the repeated and unwelcome sexual advances, sexually suggestive comments,

or sexually demeaning gestures or acts; and when filing a charge of harassment, under Title VII,

it can either be considered a “Quid Pro Quo” or “Hostile Work Environment”

(Cambron-McCabe, 2014). This case claim would be regarded as a “Hostile Work

Environment.” Although, the particular details regarding Ms.Wooden’s accusations and contract

were not mentioned in the meeting, due to regulations and certain privacy laws, from the little

bits of things said during the time, I gather Mr.Child was creating an environment that was either

threatening or humiliating, and causing interference with Ms. Wooden’s work. There also seems

to be significant evidence regarding past behavioral incidents involving Mr.Child, therefore Ms.

Wooden does seem to have a serious case.

The tension in the room was able to be cut with a butter knife around the time Trustee

board member Young added in this comment during the meeting regarding the situation,

“Women feeling bullied and not feeling empowered is something that is happening all around the

world as a movement. No employee in the Clark County School District should have to move

around their school district, and not feel comfortable or safe. Ms. Wooden does not feel safe.

And as a district it is our responsibility to make our employees feel safe. It’s about setting a
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model for our employees and students. No employee, male or female, should feel uncomfortable

or not safe. So I can not support this settlement at this time” (CCSD, 2018) Some of the board

members seemed to have similar views. In addition, this motion was close to a few of their

hearts, and considered very impactful to their work; and most seemed determined to settle this

motion. The motion passed four to three.

Personally, I am very happy with the board’s decision to approve the motion. I think the

ruling for section 3.35 does send a strong message about the values and beliefs of the board. No

CCSD employee should feel unsafe or uncomfortable, and if so they should be able to advocate

for their rights to feel safe and protected, and in turn be protected by the district if the said claims

are true. I also enjoyed being able to watch this online. It allowed me to get a feel for what a

community school district board meeting is like. After watching this meeting, I have a new

respect for these public servants, because they have to make very serious rulings; cover very dry

material in front of the public, and for long hours. This particular meeting did not finally adjourn

until midnight, after six long hours of discussion regarding cases similar to section 3.35 and

many other issues. I applaud them for their resilience and stamina.
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References

AGENDA CLARK COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT REGULAR MEETING OF THE BOARD

OF SCHOOL TRUSTEES [PDF]. (2018, March 22). Las Vegas: Clark County School

District.

Cambron-McCabe, N. H., McCarthy, M. M., & Eckes, S. (2014). Legal Rights of Teachers and

Students (Third ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.

CCSD REGULAR MEETING OF THE BOARD OF SCHOOL TRUSTEES [<iframe

width="640" height="360" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true"

src="https://clark.granicus.com/MediaPlayer.php?view_id=17&clip_id=5770&starttime=

undefined&stoptime=undefined&autostart=0&embed=1"></iframe>]. (2018, March 22).

Retrieved March 28, 2018, from

http://clark.granicus.com/MediaPlayer.php?view_id=17&clip_id=5770

Delaney, M. (2018, March 21). Clark County school trustee Kevin Child addresses workplace

complaint. Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved March 28, 2018, from

https://www.reviewjournal.com/news/education/clark-county-school-trustee-kevin-child-

addresses-workplace-complaint/

Pak-harvey, A. (2017, February 19). CCSD bars Trustee Kevin Child from making school visits.

Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved March 28, 2018, from

https://www.reviewjournal.com/news/education/ccsd-bars-trustee-kevin-child-from-maki

ng-school-visits/