The Clark County School District Board of Trustees did not vote in its meeting Thursday on the district’s recommendation to close Mount Charleston’s storm-damaged Earl B. Lundy Elementary School.
The decision was expected to be pushed back to a future meeting.
The small elementary school has been closed since August 2023 because of damages sustained when the remnants of Tropical Storm Hilary hit the mountain. The school would have served 10 students in the 2023-2024 school year, and while district officials have cited low enrollment, Lundy parents and Mount Charleston residents have said the number of kids that live on the mountain would have pushed that enrollment number up.
The district has said that repairing the storm-damaged school would come with a price tag in the millions of dollars, with the financial total of the damages estimated at between $5.5 million and $6.5 million, district officials said in Thursday’s meeting.
Lundy supporters, wearing green shirts, “Keep Lundy Open” pins and bearing hand-painted signs, packed the board room at the Edward A. Greer Education Center.
Tensions in the room were high as the district moved immediately to the Lundy agenda item. CCSD’s representatives presented their damage report to the trustees.
District representatives delivered a detailed presentation about the costs of repairs, insurance claims and the future of Lundy students.
The floor was then opened to public comment. Representatives faced the trustees as over 20 community members came up for comment. Following the first commentator, Katie Corr, the crowd applauded her speech about growing up on the mountain and attending Lundy. Trustee president Evelyn Garcia Morales reminded attendees applause was not allowed.
Chris Giunchigliani, a former Clark County commissioner, spent six minutes speaking to, and criticizing, the district.
“Everything I need to know, I learned in kindergarten, like share everything, play fair, say you’re sorry,” Giunchigliani said. “I think some of this administration need to go back to kindergarten.”
She directly attacked the CCSD Interim Superintendent Brenda Larsen-Mitchell, claiming she had the opportunity to change the district’s “toxic culture” and had chances to meet with Lundy parents on the mountain.
The room applauded her, despite the trustee’s warning.
During public comment, the power went out, to which Anna Binder, a community advocate, shouted, “We should close the board room permanently.” Another person said, “Tear the building down.” Both comments were digs at what supporters have viewed as the district’s mishandling of the Lundy situation.
Public commentators shared personal stories of Lundy, the challenges their children have faced at Indian Springs, confusion over the numbers regarding damages, anger about what they said has been a lack of transparency from the district, and also what they said were feelings of abandonment by District B Trustee Katie Williams, who was present on the phone.
Public comment neared an hour and a half and four others delivered public comment via email, before the board responded.
District G Trustee Linda Cavazos quickly made a motion to reject the current recommendation, to which the crowd broke out in cheers. District D Trustee Brenda Zamora seconded the motion, but Morales still moved into discussion. The motion did not pass.
A later motion to accept the recommendation to close did not pass, either.
Trustee Adam Johnson was against the recommendation because he said he feels this decision doesn’t fall entirely on the district’s shoulders. He pointed out that other organizations have used Lundy’s property, like Mount Charleston’s volunteer fire department.
District B Trustee Katie Williams, the trustee for Lundy, said the board has a duty to make the right financial decision for the district.
“It’s pretty hard to be supportive of rejecting this when the fact of the matter is that we have millions and millions of dollars to manage,” Williams said.
The board did not set a date for when the Lundy decision may be made.
You can contact Ella Thompson at ethompson@reviewjournal.com. Follow @elladeethompson on X.