‘Super excited’: CCSD Superintendent Jhone Ebert to start Monday, paid $385K

When students and employees of the Clark County School District begin school next week, they will have a new leader.

The Clark County School Board unanimously approved a contract with incoming Superintendent Jhone Ebert at Thursday’s meeting.

Ebert will assume her new role on Monday and receive a $385,000 salary, according to her contract, which expires on April 14, 2029.

She is also eligible for a 5 percent annual bonus after a performance evaluation from the School Board. For her current salary, that’s a $19,250 bonus.

After a yearlong, multistep process, the School Board voted unanimously on March 13 to select Ebert to be the leader of the fifth-largest school district in the country.

“We are super excited that we have gotten to this point. I want to thank our colleagues. The amount of work and time and energy that they have put in to complete one of the most important tasks of our responsibility,” President Irene Bustamante Adams told reporters Thursday.

Ebert said that when she was starting out in the school district 35 years ago, she never would have imagined that she would become superintendent.

“I pinch myself,” she said when asked about being the first woman and first Asian American woman to permanently run the school district. “I’m just honored, and I take it very seriously to make sure that I role model for other young women that see themselves and want to be the next superintendent.”

Undaunted by task ahead

Ebert said that she will start on Monday by meeting with staff first and then going out into the schools. She will also send a personal message to students and families and to staff.

She said that she will work with the School Board to craft “core pillars for student success” and build a new strategic plan.

“We know there are challenges in our school district, but they are solvable. We need to rebuild our trust, regain stability, restore confidence and improve our student achievement,” Ebert said. “I am undaunted about the task ahead because we have potential in our youth, the written richness and resolve of our community and the passion and potential of our staff.”

Ebert emphasized something that was a constant throughout her interviews and presentations while she was vying for the job of superintendent: ensuring every CCSD employee feels empowered.

She said she also wants the trustees to be able to more freely visit schools and speak to teachers instead of having to book appointments, as they currently do.

“When they make a decision on policy for 300,000 children, for a community that is almost 3 million, we need to make sure that they know what’s going on in the schools,” Ebert said.

Closing out legislative session

Ebert has been praised for her political acumen and bipartisan support. Those qualities, trustees said, are key attributes for the job of superintendent, which involves working with the Legislature on education funding and policy.

Ebert was appointed as state superintendent of public instruction by a Democratic Gov. Steve Sisolak. Gov. Joe Lombardo, a Republican, kept her on.

Continuing to work closely with state lawmakers through the end of the current legislative session is a priority, Ebert said.

When it comes to funding, she said that it did not look like there will be the same gains in education as there were in the previous legislative session.

Ebert said it’s important to demonstrate the successes of the funding investments. The retention rate is 30 percent higher in the school district because of the increased funding from the last legislative session, she said.

She also said that she will be advocating for prekindergarten.

“This is the year of pre-K,” Ebert said. “Making sure that our earliest learners have access to the support, so they have a great start on to education at the elementary level.”

Conditions of the contract

Lisa Zastrow, the lawyer hired to negotiate the contract, said that the process was smooth and she was impressed by the way Ebert made decisions that had the school district’s best interests at heart.

If Ebert gives notice of her resignation as superintendent or the board gives notice that it is firing her, she would be required to pause all hiring, promotions, appointments and transfer of any personnel, according to the contract. She is also prohibited from increasing salaries for any employee for the remainder of her term.

Former Superintendent Jesus Jara gave members of his executive Cabinet significant raises a month before he resigned in February 2024. The raises cost taxpayers more than $323,000 a year, according to a Las Vegas Review-Journal analysis of public records. He also gave new contracts to his top administrators with added benefits that cost taxpayers $3 million in his final weeks.

Ebert’s contract allows her to get paid for five unused vacation days at the end of each year. If her employment is terminated, she will be paid for all unused sick days at her full salaried rate.

At the end of a “successful contract,” any sick leave payout will be capped at a maximum of 10 percent of her salary.

Ebert can resign by giving at least 90 days notice to the School Board. She would be entitled to receive all pay and benefits up to and including the date of her resignation. If she resigns before her contract is up, Ebert is not entitled to any benefits that accrue at the end of the term.

The School Board can end Ebert’s contract by providing 30 days of written notice, according to the contract. Ebert will be paid to the end of her term. If the board ends her employment within 12 months of the end of her contract, she will receive pay and benefits until the end date of her contract.

If Ebert is terminated “for cause,” the same rules apply as if she resigns. The causes for Ebert’s termination would be failure to obtain and maintain certification, conviction of a felony or misdemeanor involving moral turpitude, act or omission constituting malfeasance, neglect or refusal to discharge the substantial duties of her office for 30 days, refusal to follow a lawful order of the board or habitual intoxication or abuse of drugs, according to the contract.

If the board terminates her for cause, Ebert is entitled to a fair hearing before the board or a hearing officer.

The school district will also defend Ebert in any litigation in which she is listed as a defendant acting as superintendent, according to the contract.

Her contract also allows her to do consulting work, speaking engagements, writing, lecturing or other activities if they do not interfere with her job or conflict with School Board policies.

Thanking Brenda Larsen-Mitchell

The School Board also took time to thank Interim Superintendent Brenda Larsen-Mitchell, who has served since Jara resigned. Larsen-Mitchell will stay in her role until Monday as she helps Ebert transition.

“From day one, when she inherited this responsibility last year, she has been unwavering. She has been steady and addressing the challenges that we had at that time,” Bustamante Adams said.

Contact Katie Futterman at kfutterman@reviewjournal.com. Follow @ktfutts on X and @katiefutterman.bsky.social.