Trustees report takeaways from National School Boards conference in Atlanta

Trustees who attended the National School Boards Association conference in Atlanta in April reported highlights and lessons during the May 7, 2025 Clark County School District work session.

Trustee Johnson, Vice President Zamora and Board Clerk Henry said they focused on themes including community engagement, strengthening the board–superintendent relationship, and practical governance tools. Trustee Johnson said he concentrated on community engagement and partnership sessions and noted the value of a clear board vision before adopting new engagement structures.

Trustee Johnson highlighted keynote speaker Ravi Hutheesing (spelled in the conference materials), who urged boards to prepare students for frequent career pivots and to “make peace profitable,” a phrase attendees found provocative. Vice President Zamora described a range of sessions she attended, including a workshop titled “Classrooms Not Courtrooms,” which examined alternatives to punitive discipline and ways school police departments can collaborate with districts to connect students to services and avoid escalating penalties.

Trustee Henry, who attended newcomer tracks and sessions on transformational leadership, said she found practical takeaways for supporting the superintendent without micromanaging operational matters. Trustees also described examples other districts use to keep trustees informed between meetings, including shared running documents of executive-level updates and calendars that summarize superintendent school visits and relevant news items.

Trustees characterized the conference as a useful opportunity to gather best practices and said they plan to bring select ideas back to district governance work and committee planning.

Ending

Trustees said the conference reinforced the district’s need for clear governance structures and better tools for communication between trustees and the superintendent’s office.