OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Virgin Valley Community Education Advisory Board Meeting - July 16, 2026

City Council & CommitteesThursday, July 16, 2026
BodyMesquite, Nevada
SessionCity Council & Committees
DateThursday, July 16, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 21:33

Transcript — Verbatim
0:02

Okay.

0:03

Like two, it is five o'clock on Thursday, July 16th.

0:08

I'd like to welcome everybody out to this Virgin Valley Community Education Advisory Board meeting held at Musquete City Hall.

0:16

Um I have not yet asked for anybody to offer the pledge, so I will offer that.

0:21

So if everybody would please arise, we can cite the Pledge of Allegiance.

0:26

Pledge.

0:27

I put it in the U.S.

0:28

Pledge Allegiance to the flag of the United States of America.

0:32

And to the Republic for which it stands one nation under God, indivisible liberty and justice for all.

0:42

Thank you.

0:44

We will excuse for the moment.

0:46

We will excuse Casey, Wyatt, and Jeff from this meeting tonight, and hopefully some of them show up.

0:53

But if they do, they do.

0:54

If they don't, they don't.

0:56

We will move into item one point one, which is public comment.

1:01

Do we have anybody in the audience who has a public comment?

1:05

No, okay.

1:07

Then we move on to consent agenda.

1:09

Item number 2.1, which is a consideration of approval of the Thursday, April 15th, 2026.

1:15

Virgin Valley Community Education Advisory Board meeting minutes and the Thursday, July 16th, 2026, Virgin Valley Community Education Advisory Board Meeting Agenda.

1:24

We'll open up any public comment for the consent agenda.

1:31

No, seeing none, we will move to discussion and possible action item on this.

1:37

Any comment from board members.

1:42

Seeing none, we would ask for a motion on this one.

1:47

I'll make a motion to approve the consent agenda.

1:51

We have a motion and a second.

1:53

All in favor?

1:54

Aye.

1:55

Any opposed?

1:57

Seeing none.

1:58

We will move on to item number 3.1, principals' comments and reports.

2:04

Um seeing no principals here.

2:07

I do have um an email that was sent in from Principal Wilson from Hughes Middle School.

2:14

And Marco, do you want me to read that?

2:16

Yeah.

2:17

Okay.

2:17

I'll just read the exact email.

2:19

Um, I won't read that it's his name at the end and phone number and all that, but uh he did want to just make a mention that on August 5th, and we've got a copy of this if anybody needs it.

2:30

August 5th is when the teachers and the staff return to work.

2:34

August 7th is the back to school activity from noon to 1 30.

2:41

August 13th is their raising canes reward for the S back scores from must have been from last school year.

2:49

And then he said that you've added six new staff members, two teachers and four support staff.

2:56

Um, the two teachers are Estelle Hafen and Guy.

3:00

I'm gonna probably butcher this.

3:01

Is it Thielman?

3:05

T H I E L M A N for the record, so that if it's Thielman, great.

3:09

If it's Thielman, great.

3:11

And then support staff is Myrica Mejia, she's a SPED aide.

3:15

Maria Leon is an AP secretary.

3:17

Arts Mortensen is campus security, and Alfredo Avila is computer tech.

3:23

And he said they're projecting to start their school year with 548 students.

3:29

And then he continued on with saying that Hughes Middle School will be getting security upgrades, including updating their camera system as well as the roof and the HVAC upgrades during the school year.

3:40

They've not been given dates on when those projects will begin, though.

3:44

And he does say thank you for all of your support.

3:46

We're looking forward to a great year.

3:48

So that is Principal Wilson's report, I guess.

3:54

Um I mean public.

4:00

This one does have no public comments on this one.

4:03

So seeing no other principals here, any comments on the, I guess we could when we move to board comments, we'll talk about the calendar items.

4:11

So we will just move into item 4.1.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Education████████████████████████████████████████████44%
Public Safety███████████████████████████27%
Community Engagement████████████████16%
Procedural███████7%
Youth Programs██████6%
Summary of Proceedings

Virgin Valley Community Education Advisory Board Meeting - July 16, 2026

The Virgin Valley Community Education Advisory Board (CEAB) met on Thursday, July 16, 2026, at 5:00 PM at Mesquite City Hall. The board discussed school security upgrades, reviewed principal reports, and heard public comment on new community education programs. Several items were tabled due to the absence of principals, and a motion was passed to pursue financial assistance for controlled access improvements at all schools.

Consent Calendar

  • Approved the April 15, 2026 meeting minutes and the July 16, 2026 agenda unanimously.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Chantal McAllister (College of Southern Nevada site coordinator) announced a new grant from the MISCI Community Fund through the Wyoming Community Foundation. The grant will fund community-based courses including e-bike/e-scooter safety, introduction to AI, Canva for marketing, website creation, and job-ready skills. Courses will be free for students, and local instructors will be trained. A kickoff event and community feedback session are planned for fall 2026.

Discussion Items

  • Principals' Comments and Reports (Item 3.1): No principals were present. An email from Principal Wilson (Hughes Middle School) was read aloud, noting that staff return on August 5, a back-to-school activity on August 7, and a Raising Cane's reward event on August 13. He reported six new staff members (two teachers, four support staff) and a projected enrollment of 548 students. Security upgrades (camera system, roof, HVAC) are planned but no start dates given.
  • Principal Goals and CEAB Assistance (Item 4.1): Discussion tabled with no action because principals were absent. The board agreed to add the item to the next agenda.
  • Security Measures, Access Points, and Upgrades (Item 4.2): Board member Jeff raised concerns about inconsistent security across schools, noting that only one school (Virgin Valley Elementary) has controlled access. He advocated for uniform controlled access at all schools. The board identified financial constraints as the main barrier. Board members volunteered to contact Superintendent Joan Ebert and Lydia Dominguez (CCSD) to explore funding options. A motion was made to pursue this, seconded, and passed unanimously.

Key Outcomes

  • Approved consent agenda (minutes and agenda) unanimously.
  • Took no action on Item 4.1 (principal goals) and will revisit at the next meeting.
  • Passed motion (unanimous) for board members to contact Superintendent Ebert and Lydia Dominguez to investigate financial routes to bring all schools to the same level of controlled access, with a focus on securing back doors.
  • Next meeting scheduled for Thursday, October 10, 2026. The board will discuss meeting frequency for 2027 and filling an at-large board position (Reynolds' seat).
  • Adjourned at 5:21 PM.

Meeting Transcript

Okay. Like two, it is five o'clock on Thursday, July 16th. I'd like to welcome everybody out to this Virgin Valley Community Education Advisory Board meeting held at Musquete City Hall. Um I have not yet asked for anybody to offer the pledge, so I will offer that. So if everybody would please arise, we can cite the Pledge of Allegiance. Pledge. I put it in the U.S. Pledge Allegiance to the flag of the United States of America. And to the Republic for which it stands one nation under God, indivisible liberty and justice for all. Thank you. We will excuse for the moment. We will excuse Casey, Wyatt, and Jeff from this meeting tonight, and hopefully some of them show up. But if they do, they do. If they don't, they don't. We will move into item one point one, which is public comment. Do we have anybody in the audience who has a public comment? No, okay. Then we move on to consent agenda. Item number 2.1, which is a consideration of approval of the Thursday, April 15th, 2026. Virgin Valley Community Education Advisory Board meeting minutes and the Thursday, July 16th, 2026, Virgin Valley Community Education Advisory Board Meeting Agenda. We'll open up any public comment for the consent agenda. No, seeing none, we will move to discussion and possible action item on this. Any comment from board members. Seeing none, we would ask for a motion on this one. I'll make a motion to approve the consent agenda. We have a motion and a second. All in favor? Aye. Any opposed? Seeing none. We will move on to item number 3.1, principals' comments and reports. Um seeing no principals here. I do have um an email that was sent in from Principal Wilson from Hughes Middle School. And Marco, do you want me to read that? Yeah. Okay. I'll just read the exact email. Um, I won't read that it's his name at the end and phone number and all that, but uh he did want to just make a mention that on August 5th, and we've got a copy of this if anybody needs it. August 5th is when the teachers and the staff return to work. August 7th is the back to school activity from noon to 1 30. August 13th is their raising canes reward for the S back scores from must have been from last school year. And then he said that you've added six new staff members, two teachers and four support staff. Um, the two teachers are Estelle Hafen and Guy. I'm gonna probably butcher this. Is it Thielman? T H I E L M A N for the record, so that if it's Thielman, great. If it's Thielman, great. And then support staff is Myrica Mejia, she's a SPED aide. Maria Leon is an AP secretary. Arts Mortensen is campus security, and Alfredo Avila is computer tech.

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