Clark County School District board selects Joan Ebert as superintendent finalist, directs contract negotiations

The Clark County School District Board of Trustees voted 7-0 on March 13, 2025, to appoint State Superintendent Joan Ebert as the district—s superintendent finalist and directed legal counsel to defer contract negotiations to the Clark County District Attorney—s Office.

The decision culminated a yearlong nationwide search led by the board and its search firm HYA and follows community focus groups, public forums and three finalists who interviewed publicly last week. Trustees repeatedly cited the need for an experienced leader who could provide stability and navigate the current Nevada legislative session.

Board President Irene Bustamante Adams opened the agenda item by describing the search as a long, community-driven process and outlined the public-comment and deliberation procedure. After trustees gave brief public remarks for roughly three minutes each, Trustee Cavazos formally moved to appoint Ebert. Trustee Dominguez seconded the motion; the board recorded the motion as passing 7 to 0.

Trustees described several reasons for support in public remarks. Trustee Baron said the district needs steadiness during uncertain times: "We need a leader who brings stability. We need a leader who can actually have a relationship, a bipartisan relationship with our state leaders," he said, adding that the district must be able to work with the legislature during a fast-moving session. Several trustees said that Ebert—s knowledge of Nevada policy and established relationships at the state level would allow the district to "hit the ground running." Trustee Dominguez said he heard repeatedly from the community that the district needs a leader connected to Nevada and its laws and that, for those reasons, he would "stand behind Joan Ebert for Superintendent."

Public commenters and community organizations largely urged the board to hire Ebert. Yvette Williams, chair of the Clark County Black Caucus, told trustees that after participating in the interview process her organization had concluded "there is only one candidate that meets these standards," and cited Ebert—s experience running large urban systems and navigating state government.

After selecting Ebert as the finalist, the board voted 7-0 to direct board counsel to defer the employment-contract negotiations to the Clark County District Attorney—s Office because of a conflict with the board—s interim general counsel. The board—s action directs the district attorney—s office to represent the board in creating an offer and negotiating terms; trustees said the board will retain the right to hire private counsel at any time if it chooses.

No employment contract was signed at the meeting. Trustees discussed, without formal vote, expectations for a transition period and recommended that the interim administration pause major hiring or promotions of central-office personnel until the new superintendent assumes the role to preserve stability during the change in leadership.

The board—s action followed procedural steps the trustees established earlier in the meeting: public comment occurred before the final vote and trustees limited their pre-vote remarks to high-level statements about candidate fit. Interim Superintendent Brenda Larson Mitchell was thanked by trustees for her work leading the district during the search.

The selection is significant for the nation—s fifth-largest school district, cited repeatedly at the meeting as serving more than one million students statewide during a multi-year contract window. The board did not finalize employment terms at the meeting; next steps are contract negotiations led by the District Attorney—s Office and any subsequent board ratification required by district policy.

Warrants and other routine business preceded the superintendent item: Trustee Henry reported ratified warrants totaling $299,875,141.87 earlier in the meeting.