Good morning, and welcome to the Indy Education newsletter. I’m Rocio Hernandez, The Nevada Independent’s K-12 education reporter. 

This newsletter provides a recap of the latest education stories and highlights interesting educators, students, programs and other events and resources throughout the state. Click here to subscribe to the newsletter and receive it each week via email.

I want to hear from you! Send questions, comments or suggestions on what I should be covering to [email protected]. 

News briefs

📝 Clark County School Board approves contract with compliance monitor, amends final budget — After facing intense scrutiny for unexpected budget issues, including a deficit of about $10 million, the Clark County School Board on Thursday unanimously approved a contract with a compliance monitor appointed to the district by State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jhone Ebert and Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo. 

The district will pay the compliance monitor, Yolanda King of King Strategies LLC, at a rate of $160 per hour in a contract not to exceed $60,000, as mandated by Ebert and Lombardo. King will assist the district to develop and implement a corrective action plan to address the issues that led to the budget mishaps. 

As part of the contract, King will have access to any meeting related to the district’s reorganization and operations as well as access to the district's building, information and resources excluding confidential student data. 

On Thursday, the district also approved an amended final budget, a standard part of the district’s budget cycle, which included a $9.9 million reduction in the district’s unassigned ending fund balance after the district dipped into its leftover money to make up for the budget shortfall. 

School Spotlight

Culinary students honing kitchen skills, work ethic at a Las Vegas student-run restaurant 

Southeast Career Technical Academy (SECTA) culinary students shuffled around the kitchen as they prepared for the lunch rush hour at their school’s restaurant, The Whitney. 

The line cooks sprung into action once the orders started coming in, simmering sauce for chicken tikka masala, grilling chicken for salads and frying rice with bacon and veggies, heating up the kitchen and filling it with the aroma of spices. They handed off the finished product to servers waiting on the other side of a window. 

While it's in a school setting, the restaurant run by the program’s juniors and seniors is just like any other. 

The host greeted customers and seated them at their tables where plates, napkins and utensils were laid out, then handed them a menu. Customers were treated to complimentary bread rolls while they waited for their food and drinks.

The menu, which rotates regularly, is all made from scratch by the culinary students. Prices range from $1.50 for a cup of soup to $8 for an entree. Customers can reserve a table in the dining room with large windows looking out to the Las Vegas Strip. 

The restaurant is open most Tuesdays through Fridays from 10 a.m.-12 p.m. to students and staff within the school and the public. Next to the restaurant is the school’s coffee shop, also run by the culinary students.

“It's all done by them so that when they graduate, they've already been working in a restaurant, really for two years, and they can kind of seamlessly transition into a nice-paying job here in Las Vegas,” said culinary arts instructor Chef John Schlothauer. 

SECTA is one of the nine career and technical academies (CTA) in the Clark County School District, including one, South CTA, that’s opening next school year. They offer specialized curriculum in fields such as manufacturing and engineering that prepare students for careers in those industries. 

The programs drew the attention of Colorado Gov. Jared Polis, a Democrat and chair of the National Governors Association’s Let’s Get Ready initiative that aims to advance K-12 education.  

Last Thursday, Polis toured SECTA’s culinary, advanced manufacturing, construction technology and cosmetology programs during the association’s regional workshop in Las Vegas. Like the restaurant, the cosmetology program also takes clients from inside and outside the school looking for hair care, nail care, skin care and other beauty services so students can gain real-world experience. 

While Polis said test scores are important, he wants to see states moving toward measuring student’s career readiness, an area he thinks Nevada is doing well.

“Providing these kinds of career opportunities and training for kids is a huge deal both for the individual to earn a good living but also for the economy as a whole to make sure we have the people with the skills we need to power our growth,” Polis said. 

Schlothauer said graduates of SECTA’s culinary program have gone to work at local restaurants on and off Strip such as Spago by Chef Wolfgang Puck inside the Bellagio Hotel & Casino. He said one of the program’s 2024 graduates recently landed a job at Joël Robuchon, a French restaurant inside the MGM Grand with three Michelin stars.

“She never went to culinary school. She just went through our program, and she beat out a lot of applicants to get that job,” Schlothauer said. 

Senior Melanie Leon said she enrolled in SECTA’s culinary program because she always loved cooking at home for her family and friends and wanted to learn to be a private cook.

In addition to honing her knife and cooking skills, she said the program has taught her to work in a team, which is important in the culinary industry. This year, Leon got to work with Schlothauer and culinary instructor Chef Emily Giacona to develop a menu item, Melanie’s Flatbread, made with roma tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, chiffonade basil and balsamic glaze, inspired by a late-night snack she makes at home. She also enjoys working in the front of the restaurant as a waiter. 

“I like talking to customers and I just feel like the day goes by so much faster too since there's always orders going out,” Leon said.  

But she said it can get stressful, just like in a real restaurant setting.

“Because we're on such a short lunchtime, we have to get everything ready as quickly as possible and get it out as soon as possible so that the client can eat in time,” Leon said. 

After she graduates, Leon plans to study business at UNLV and take what she’s learned from the culinary program to get a job at a restaurant so she can save up money to one day open her own bakery.

Regardless of the career path students take, Schlothauer said he hopes they come out of the program with a strong work ethic that will help them secure jobs and excel in the culinary field and beyond. 

“I think nothing replaces hard work,” he said. “I would rather have 100 hard workers than 100 talented lazy people.” 

Have a student or staffer who we should feature in the next edition of School Spotlight? Share your nominations with me at [email protected].

Reading Assignments

Joey Gilbert resigning as Douglas County schools’ legal counsel

Reno lawyer and former gubernatorial candidate Joey Gilbert’s upcoming departure will end more than a year of work in the position marked by debate over his experience and questions about whether he was overcharging.

Extra Credit

Las Vegas Review-Journal: High school hosts 1st mariachi concert after program’s launch

Events

🍎 Subcommittee on Education Accountability — Monday, Dec. 16, 9:30 a.m. 

The agenda includes presentations on the impact of the K-12 education funding increase on Nevada school districts and an update on the Clark County School District’s budget deficit. 

Featured social media post

Congrats to State Board of Education President Felicia Ortiz and René Cantú on their final meeting.