Elko County School District reorganizes board, approves 2026–27 and 2027–28 calendars and begins review of discipline policy

The Elko County School District Board of Trustees completed its annual reorganization and approved key administrative items at a meeting held Jan. 6, Superintendent CJ Anderson said in a public recap.

Jeff Durham was selected as board president and Susan Veil as clerk, Anderson said. Brooke Ballard will continue as the district representative on the Debt Management Commission; Durham and Veil will continue roles with the Nevada Association of School Boards (Durham as legislative liaison and Veil as NASB director) and Teresa Dastrop will remain alternate NASB director. Several other routine appointments also were confirmed.

The board approved the proposed school calendars for the next two school years as 'Option C' — described in the meeting as the 2627 and 2728 calendars and here reported as the 2026–27 and 2027–28 school-year calendars — which Anderson said “was approved for the next 2 years.” The superintendent thanked union leadership from the district’s employee groups for participating in the selection process.

The board accepted notices from employee organizations named in the meeting as ECTA (teachers’ association) and XO (support staff organization) of their intent to bargain for the coming school year; Anderson described these as routine actions that were approved.

On policy, trustees heard a first reading of a revision to policy JDEA, which addresses the district’s 'habitual disciplinary problem' designation. Anderson explained the revision aligns the policy’s definitions with the Nevada Revised Statutes (NRS) and described trigger criteria mentioned during the discussion: a student who in a single school year has twice threatened or attempted to extort another student or staff member, or who has a record of five significant suspensions. Anderson said the policy will return with adjustments at a future meeting for further consideration.

Anderson also highlighted non-action items from the meeting. Chief nurse Skylar Basanez, joined by Cammie Carr, presented on school nursing efforts that extend beyond basic medical care to classroom support and broader campus health work. The district publicly thanked longtime chief nurse Bobby Shanks on her retirement for more than a decade of service, including leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic.

On budget matters, Anderson said the district has circulated three surveys (students, staff and community) following a December budget discussion and has convened a budget committee including district staff, union leaders, elected officials, parents and community members; that committee has now met twice and is expected to offer recommendations to the board at the February meeting. To improve transparency, the district will launch a budget-focused section of its website — separate from the ClearGov portal — before the next board meeting to explain reductions, funding formulas and historical actions, and to host FAQs and a planned six-week article series.

Anderson encouraged stakeholders to participate in an ongoing pre-K survey (open through the week of the meeting). He said any expansion of pre-K offerings would depend on additional funding sources and would not be funded from the district’s general fund. He closed by inviting community members to attend future board meetings and to share feedback.

The board’s first reading of policy JDEA and the budget committee’s forthcoming recommendations are expected to return at a future meeting; the transcript recap did not record formal vote tallies or the names of motion makers or seconders for the listed approvals.