"CARSON CITY -- THE CLARK COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT MIGHT BE ABLE TO AVOID MASS TEACHER LAYOFFS, EVEN WITH THE 6.9 PERCENT REDUCTION IN STATE SUPPORT THAT CAME OUT OF THE LEGISLATURE'S SPECIAL SESSION ON SUNDAY, AN ADMINISTRATOR SAID"
Joyce Haldeman, the district's associate superintendent of government relations, could not provide figures on potential teacher layoffs but said the number would not be many if teachers union officials would agree to salary reductions of 2 percent to 4 percent.
"We have talked about the need for a 'shared sacrifice,'" Haldeman said. "We could save many jobs if they do that."
The 6.9 percent state funding reduction to education agreed on by Gov. Jim Gibbons and the Legislature represents a loss of $117 million to the K-12 system and a loss of $46 million to higher education. The Clark County School District expects to receive about $90 million less in state funding through June 30, 2011.
"It is not pretty," Haldeman said. "But under the circumstances, I don't know what else they could have done."
Earlier in the special session, Clark County Superintendent Walt Rulffes warned that more than 2,300 district teachers faced layoffs if the 10 percent reduction in state support proposed by Gibbons was approved.
The position of the Nevada State Education Association, an umbrella organization for local teachers unions, has been that salary concessions must be bargained. The association wants to review all sources of school revenue to determine whether other funds could be used to avoid layoffs or pay cuts.
Haldeman said the district is looking at laying off 100 of its 1,340