“Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our inclinations, or the dictates of our passion, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence.” (John Adams – 2nd President of the United States)

How Do We Fix Our WCSD Schools?  Part VI of a 6-Part Series

 Overview:

For over a decade, the Washoe County School District (and all Nevada public schools) have ranked last in the nation or almost-last in the nation in quality of education.  WCSD superintendents and school boards have primarily blamed our failing schools on a lack of funding. That is provably false because 10 states fund their public schools equal-to or LOWER-than Nevada, and all 10 of those states outperform our schools.  

But if the solution for improving our schools is NOT more money, then what is it?

Our failing schools result from 6 main issues that need to be dealt with. Each issue will be explained in more detail in this column and in the three succeeding ones.

Part I -(Feb. 23) FACTS MATTER – WHAT TO DO about our WCSD schools 
Part II – (March 2) WASTE LESS MONEY on buildings and non-instructional support services
Part lll – (March 16) WASTE LESS TIME and MONEY on instructional-related employees
Part lV – (March 28) MORE ACCOUNTABILITY regarding WHAT is taught and HOW
Part V – (April 5) BETTER DISCIPLINE and CONTROL of student behavior
Part VI – (April 20) BETTER LEADERSHIP

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Part VI:  BETTER LEADERSHIP

 “Where there is no vision, the people perish…” (Proverbs 29)

There is NO hope for the future of Washoe County’s 104 public schools and 62,000 students until WCSD leadership changes from top to bottom, beginning with Superintendent Kristin McNeill and Board President Angela Taylor. There currently exists NO “vision” in this duo’s leadership regarding how to proceed in creating schools that provide accountable academic teaching, a safe, secure and moral school environment, and don’t mismanage and waste almost $1 Billion per year in annual funding.

SUPERINTENDENT KRISTIN MCNEILL

Superintendent McNeill was selected by the School Board as WCSD’s new superintendent approximately one year ago. McNeill’s appointment directly contradicted the recommendation of the professional search group hired by the Board, who didn’t even rate McNeill among the top 6 superintendent candidates in a very weak field of applicants.

Why did the Board’s professional search group NOT recommend Kristin McNeill to be the new superintendent?

• Perhaps because she was the #1 assistant, supporter, and enforcer for the previous superintendent whom the Board terminated for incompetence and unethical behavior
• Perhaps because according to her own bio-profile, McNeill has ZERO firsthand experience in solving WCSD’s most urgent problems at the secondary school level, including:
• On-campus drug abuse
• Assaultive student behavior
• Extreme disparity in academic achievement between racial groups
• The lowest academic achievement in the nation
• Resisting the growing political pressure of the Extreme Left and their efforts to force schools to virtually ignore academic teaching, and instead, emphasize politicized curriculum that is historically distorted and inaccurate, anti-White, anti-law enforcement, and anti-American.

With academic achievement and student behavior continuing to worsen, Superintendent McNeill’s response has been to totally hide from the public the chaotic, dysfunctional situation that exists in our schools. She keeps campuses locked-down even when schools ARE in session: preventing ANY unannounced campus visits by either Board members or the community. Meanwhile, McNeill and Angela Taylor continue to pass WCSD policies that threaten the jobs of teachers who dissent from WCSD’s Leftist political views, or discuss any topics with students or peers that depart from WCSD’s political viewpoint.

BOARD PRESIDENT ANGELA TAYLOR

Like Superintendent McNeill, Ms. Taylor has ZERO qualifications to be a Board member, let alone to serve as its President. Her background bio shows that Taylor has never taught traditional classes for one minute in K-12 public schools (similar to the rest of the Board members), and has ZERO firsthand experience regarding ANY of the school issues she makes policy for. What Taylor DOES have is hardcore arrogance toward refusing to answer questions raised by the community, and a race-based agenda that supports the teaching of anti-White/anti-American curriculum.

Ms. Taylor has the other 6 members of the Board right where she wants them: totally under her control and thoroughly intimidated. With the occasional exception of tepid opposition from new Board member Jeff Church, Taylor delivers McNeill just what superintendents crave: a Board that shuts up, nods their heads, and rubber-stamps whatever outrageous policies the Superintendent wants approved. Taylor has repeatedly shown her willingness to flout the law, and is never held accountable by the rest of the Board.

• When Taylor, who is Black, recently uttered an unarguably racist, anti-White statement to the press, the rest of the Board members refused to enforce their own “anti-racism” policy that had just recently been approved, and censure Taylor.
• When a photo of Taylor surfaced from a recent Board meeting, it showed her sitting at the Board’s dais, wearing no Covid mask, and talking to a staff member less than 2 feet away. After that Board meeting, Taylor closed future Board meetings to the public, stating that the unwillingness to wear masks by those who oppose her, constituted a serious danger to staff and students at the meetings. Taylor made no mention of violating her own rules regarding mask wearing.

 

CONCLUSION: WHAT IS THE FIRST STEP TOWARD FIXING OUR DYSFUNCTIONAL WCSD SCHOOLS?

For anyone who is serious about improving WCSD schools and correcting the numerous problems identified in this 6-part series, removing the Superintendent and Board President from their positions must be the top priority. Trying to work with, compromise with, or find common ground with either the WCSD Superintendent or Board President, would be an exercise in futility. Both McNeill and Taylor have provided abundant proof of:

• Their total lack of experience in the jobs they hold
• Their complete inability to fix our troubled schools
• Their lack of honesty and integrity in dealing with the public and their students
• Their willingness to promote themselves and their Leftist policies, via curriculum that is inaccurate and distorted anti-White, anti-law enforcement, and anti-American.

The law provides several avenues for removing both McNeill and Taylor from their positions. Anyone who cares about our failing schools and the horrendous impact they will have on Washoe County’s future if they are not fixed, should immediately start working with local groups dedicated to accomplishing this result.

“We have it in our power to begin the world (and our schools) again.”   (Thomas Paine – 1776)

Feedback is welcomed.  Contact Paul White at email:  white.pauld@gmail.com