OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Carson City School District Board Workshop and Regular Meeting – February 24, 2026

Board of Supervisors — Tuesday, February 24, 2026
BodyCarson City, Nevada
SessionBoard of Supervisors
DateTuesday, February 24, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 2:53:01

Transcript — Verbatim
0:01

We are going to start with our uh workshop.

0:06

And so we'll go ahead and uh start with Spencer.

0:15

I think we're gonna do both.

0:20

All righty.

0:21

Um good evening, Madam President, members of the board.

0:25

Fun to be here again for another workshop with some band warm-up in the background.

0:32

All right.

0:33

For your entertainment this evening, I have both a PowerPoint and a handout.

0:42

So and again, if as you recall from our last workshop, we kind of reviewed all the funds.

0:47

Um we had these three left that are kind of related, and then a general fund and and another little one for our next workshop.

0:54

Uh but today we'll be going over um our debt service fund, capital projects fund, and bond projects fund.

1:02

Capital projects, capital improvement fund.

1:04

It's one two names for the same fund.

1:06

It gets called both.

1:07

So you might see those interchangeably, including one different on the handout than what's in the uh PowerPoint.

1:14

So uh these funds are a little bit different than all the others because all of our other funds are very, very salary and benefits heavy.

1:21

These are very unique in that uh they're very little of those of salary and benefits costs go into these funds.

1:27

So if we start with uh our debt services fund, um that's fund 400, and that's gonna be page three of your handout.

1:37

Just to keep you on your toes, the handout pages are not in the order of the PowerPoint.

1:42

I just want to make sure that we're keeping your your mental mental flexibility in in good shape.

1:49

So what the debt service fund is, this is funded by local property tax.

1:54

And it's essentially I really like the uh the analogy.

1:58

It's it's to pay our mortgage, right?

2:01

This this fund is collected and it's used solely for nearly solely to cover our debt service costs, which is our principal interest costs of our bond payments.

2:11

So uh the health of this fund um can uh affects our ability to bond in the future.

2:18

If we do have excess beyond what covers our debt service funds, then it can be transferred to pay as you go funding, which is essentially where we can transfer that to our capital projects fund and use it for the very same projects that we would for bond funding.

2:31

Uh, you may recall earlier this year we did an amendment to cover to transfer $800,000 from this fund as pay you go as you go funding to cover the three buses that we had the opportunity to purchase.

2:42

Um so that's an example.

2:43

It's not common um that we do that.

2:46

And again, some of the reasoning being is by statute we have to have 50% of the next year's um principal and interest costs available at the at the end of the previous year.

2:58

So that's kind of the minimum requirement.

3:00

But if we only had that, that's like having the credit card maxed out and could affect our bond uh rating for our future bonding.

3:09

So there would have to be really good reasons and some prudence and a lot of good forecasting for us to take it down that low.

3:15

We are currently over 100% of coverage for that.

3:18

So it's in a good position, like I say, is the last couple of times we bonded, we've we've come out with favorable rating.

3:23

Part of that is is is the health of and the balance of this account being more than that.

3:27

50% is required by statute.

3:30

So the expenditures for this are very simple.

3:33

It's uh the principal and interest for our bonds.

3:36

Um again, the handout is is very similar to what we've done for the other funds that kind of shows hey, here's our salary and benefits costs.

3:42

This one's unique, there's none.

3:44

And then our professional services, our principal cost of 4.8 million, and our interest cost of 2.9 million.

3:51

That's the annual cost for our bond servicing for FY26.

3:57

In comparison to last year, that was 8.3 million, so it's kind of dropped a little bit, uh, but that fluctuates a little bit depending on how we we structure our bonds to kind of be the most beneficial for our cash flow and what we need.

4:09

Uh so that doesn't mean that though that will not always necessarily drop every year.

4:12

Sometimes we have some larger principal payments built in depending on the age of our bonds.

4:17

Um for the revenues for this, like I say, it's a local property tax component.

4:22

Um the amount that we receive comes from an estimate from the department of taxation.

4:26

Uh they're very good at uh that portion of what they do and give us some really good estimates to use for our budget.

4:33

Um that amount this year is 9.6 million, and then we do budget for 100,000 of earnings on investments.

4:41

That amount generally could be higher, but is in our past practice, we don't really recognize or realize that income until it's all said and done for the year, and then it it becomes available for the next year.

4:53

So even though it might be more than 100,000, we don't budget for more than that because we really don't want it to come in lower if something happens mid-year and and the interest that we've been getting is cut in half.

5:06

We don't want to have planned to spend that and get in a tight spot.

5:10

So any questions regarding fund 400.

5:16

All righty.

5:18

Uh next one is capital projects.

5:21

And that one will be on page two of your handouts.

5:25

So handouts going in reverse order of what I'm presenting.

5:29

This uh uh if you look at the bonding, so we do include the the costs for one project manager and his admin assistant.

5:38

Um those aren't actually budgeted in here because those get capitalized into our larger projects.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Education Funding█████████████████████████████████████████████60%
Procedural█████████████17%
Financial Management█████7%
Public Engagement███4%
Budget Equity Analysis██3%
Public Health██3%
School Recess Policy██2%
Technology and Innovation██2%
Fiscal Sustainability█1%
Summary of Proceedings

Carson City School District Board Workshop and Regular Meeting – February 24, 2026

The Carson City School District Board of Trustees held a combined workshop and regular meeting on February 24, 2026, beginning at 1:30 PM. The workshop covered three special funds (debt service, capital projects, and bond projects), followed by the regular meeting which included an update on the district's strategic plan metrics, staff and student climate survey results (fall 2025), a presentation of the independent audit for FY25, and a comprehensive ‘State of the District’ overview by the superintendent.

Consent Calendar

  • The board unanimously approved the consent agenda as submitted.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • One public comment was received via email from Trish Wold. The comment was provided to trustees and included in the permanent record. No in-person public comments were offered.

Discussion Items

Workshop: Debt Service, Capital Projects, and Bond Projects Funds

  • Debt Service Fund (Fund 400): Funded by local property tax, this fund covers principal and interest on bonds. The district maintains over 100% coverage (statutory minimum is 50%). FY26 costs are $4.8M principal and $2.9M interest; revenue estimate is $9.6M plus $100K investment earnings. An $800K pay-as-you-go transfer was made earlier this year to purchase three buses.
  • Capital Projects/Improvement Fund: Funded by basic governmental service taxes ($893K budgeted) and transfers. FY26 budget totals $2.0M for projects such as carpet replacement, painting, and slurry seal. Projects must have lifespans longer than the bond term.
  • Bond Projects Fund: Opening balance of $21.7M; no new bonds planned for FY26. Expenditures include capitalized salary/benefits for a project manager and admin assistant (Mark Johnson and staff). The district emphasized that bond funds cannot be used for educational positions, salaries, or routine maintenance. A surplus in the debt service fund ($1.9M) cannot be transferred to the general fund for salaries/benefits.

Strategic Plan Update (Empower Carson City 2027)

  • Superintendent AJ Feuling presented the second‑quarter metrics. Key new data points:
    • Goal 2 – High School Graduation: Rate is 83.3% (goal >90%). Percentage of students earning College/Career Ready or Advanced Diploma still pending from NDE.
    • Post‑Secondary Success: CTE participants (70.2%) decreased slightly year‑over‑year; CTE completers (61%) increased.
    • Parent Engagement Survey: Will be released this week; last year’s response rate was ~600, with 72% positive. Trustees were asked to provide principal feedback on parent engagement to inform Goal 3.
    • Next Steps: Superintendent noted that the strategic plan will be revisited next school year as 2027 approaches. He is exploring “tenure” or living plan models used by other districts.

Staff and Student Climate Survey Results (Fall 2025)

  • Staff Survey: 537 responses. Scores use a 1–500 scale (needs improvement: 100–345; adequate: 346–375; excellent ≥376). Highlights:
    • Emotional Safety: 375 (one point below excellent)
    • Relationships: 369 (up from 362 in 2023)
    • Bullying: 386 (excellent); Physical Safety: 354 (adequate)
  • Student Survey (Grades 5–12): Over 3,700 responses (80% participation).
    • Social‑Emotional Competence: highest in three years across elementary, middle, and high school levels.
    • Physical Safety: Exceptional at elementary (414) and improving at middle school (20‑point gain over prior year). Emotional safety at middle and high school remains below the adequate threshold, although trending upward.
    • Principals are analyzing data; deans/vice principals will focus on physical safety.

Annual Financial Audit (FYE June 30, 2025)

  • David Silva of the auditing firm presented the audit, noting a clean (unqualified) opinion and no compliance findings with NRS/NAC. The report on federal programs (compliance audit) will be issued in a few weeks; preliminary work indicates no findings.
  • The district’s overall financial position is “fairly strong.” General fund balance as of June 30, 2025, is $18.5M (actual), significantly higher than the budgeted ending balance of about $12M, reflecting conservative budgeting.
  • The board unanimously accepted the audit and directed the CFO to file it per NRS 354.624.

State of the District Presentation

  • Superintendent Feuling reviewed enrollment trends (downward), demographics (growing Hispanic and English learner populations), and poverty indicators (direct certification for free/reduced lunch rose from ~22% in 2014 to ~40% now).
  • Graduation/Remediation: District grad rate is 83.3% (up slightly). Remedial course data is no longer available (Nevada switched to co‑requisite support models). Historical remediation rates (19.2%) were below charter schools (26%), indicating strong college preparation.
  • Attendance: Average daily attendance (92.8%) has improved from 92.5% last year; chronic absenteeism remains at 27.2% (up from 15.3% pre‑COVID).
  • Staffing: 87.5% of the general fund budget flows to schools; district‑level leadership costs are the lowest among comparable Nevada districts (5.5% vs. state avg. 7.6%).
  • Academic Progress: Elementary math proficiency rebounded after implementing new curriculum; new ELA curriculum (Amplify CKLA) is being implemented. AP participation and pass rates continue to rise, with 99% of AP students earning C or better. JumpStart program pass rate is 97.2%.
  • AI Integration: Over 156 staff members were already using Magic School platform before formal adoption; Gemini and Notebook LM are available to staff. A pilot AI program to support K‑2 ELA at home is under consideration.
  • Staff Morale (JAC Survey): Questions on mutual respect, feedback, recognition, and training showed stable or slightly improving positive responses over three years.

Other Items

  • The March 24, 2026 regular meeting will include interviews to fill Trustee Walker’s resignation and a budget workshop.
  • The April meeting will be replaced by a recognition night at the Carson High School theater (6:00 PM).

Key Outcomes

  • Vote: Unanimously approved the consent agenda and the annual independent audit report.
  • Directives: Superintendent will provide a recap of fund relationships and restrictions; board members were asked to submit principal feedback on parent engagement for the strategic plan.
  • Next Meeting: Regular meeting on March 24, 2026, at 6:00 PM, including budget workshop and trustee interviews.

Meeting Transcript

We are going to start with our uh workshop. And so we'll go ahead and uh start with Spencer. I think we're gonna do both. All righty. Um good evening, Madam President, members of the board. Fun to be here again for another workshop with some band warm-up in the background. All right. For your entertainment this evening, I have both a PowerPoint and a handout. So and again, if as you recall from our last workshop, we kind of reviewed all the funds. Um we had these three left that are kind of related, and then a general fund and and another little one for our next workshop. Uh but today we'll be going over um our debt service fund, capital projects fund, and bond projects fund. Capital projects, capital improvement fund. It's one two names for the same fund. It gets called both. So you might see those interchangeably, including one different on the handout than what's in the uh PowerPoint. So uh these funds are a little bit different than all the others because all of our other funds are very, very salary and benefits heavy. These are very unique in that uh they're very little of those of salary and benefits costs go into these funds. So if we start with uh our debt services fund, um that's fund 400, and that's gonna be page three of your handout. Just to keep you on your toes, the handout pages are not in the order of the PowerPoint. I just want to make sure that we're keeping your your mental mental flexibility in in good shape. So what the debt service fund is, this is funded by local property tax. And it's essentially I really like the uh the analogy. It's it's to pay our mortgage, right? This this fund is collected and it's used solely for nearly solely to cover our debt service costs, which is our principal interest costs of our bond payments. So uh the health of this fund um can uh affects our ability to bond in the future. If we do have excess beyond what covers our debt service funds, then it can be transferred to pay as you go funding, which is essentially where we can transfer that to our capital projects fund and use it for the very same projects that we would for bond funding. Uh, you may recall earlier this year we did an amendment to cover to transfer $800,000 from this fund as pay you go as you go funding to cover the three buses that we had the opportunity to purchase. Um so that's an example. It's not common um that we do that. And again, some of the reasoning being is by statute we have to have 50% of the next year's um principal and interest costs available at the at the end of the previous year. So that's kind of the minimum requirement. But if we only had that, that's like having the credit card maxed out and could affect our bond uh rating for our future bonding. So there would have to be really good reasons and some prudence and a lot of good forecasting for us to take it down that low. We are currently over 100% of coverage for that. So it's in a good position, like I say, is the last couple of times we bonded, we've we've come out with favorable rating. Part of that is is is the health of and the balance of this account being more than that. 50% is required by statute. So the expenditures for this are very simple. It's uh the principal and interest for our bonds. Um again, the handout is is very similar to what we've done for the other funds that kind of shows hey, here's our salary and benefits costs. This one's unique, there's none. And then our professional services, our principal cost of 4.8 million, and our interest cost of 2.9 million. That's the annual cost for our bond servicing for FY26. In comparison to last year, that was 8.3 million, so it's kind of dropped a little bit, uh, but that fluctuates a little bit depending on how we we structure our bonds to kind of be the most beneficial for our cash flow and what we need. Uh so that doesn't mean that though that will not always necessarily drop every year. Sometimes we have some larger principal payments built in depending on the age of our bonds. Um for the revenues for this, like I say, it's a local property tax component. Um the amount that we receive comes from an estimate from the department of taxation. Uh they're very good at uh that portion of what they do and give us some really good estimates to use for our budget. Um that amount this year is 9.6 million, and then we do budget for 100,000 of earnings on investments.

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