Fraudulent voter petition scheme draws guilty plea
A Las Vegas man pleaded guilty this week in a fraudulent voter petition scheme, the Nevada attorney general’s office announced Friday.
Patrick Duffy, 48, was indicted in March on 13 felony charges in connection with submitting falsified signatures on a petition that sought to get the Nevada Green Party on the general election ballot in 2016, according to the attorney general’s office.
Duffy pleaded guilty to one felony count of misconduct in signing, filing or altering a petition.
The new leader of the Clark County School District has instituted a hiring freeze for administrative positions in all central offices while also luring two former colleagues from Orlando, Florida, to fill top positions.
The freeze was announced in a memo to the central executive team and school associate superintendents on Thursday.
“The only exception(s) that I will consider will be for those positions that directly impact schools and the approval of these positions will only be given by me,” Jesus Jara wrote.
Diane Gullett — an area superintendent in the Orange County Public Schools District — will replace Deputy Superintendent Kim Wooden, who plans to retire in November. Her annual salary will be $160,692.
Gullett was a former principal and executive area director in the district’s School Transformation Office, according to her Linkedin profile. She also oversaw districtwide professional development for teachers and administrators, Jara said in a statement.
Jennifer Cupid-mccoy, most recently a principal at Freedom
High School in Orlando, will serve as Jara’s chief of staff with a salary of $145,860. She also previously supervised principals, Jara said.
The School Board will vote on the contracts for both employees at a meeting on Thursday.
“I am grateful that both leaders are eager to join a talented team of administrators in CCSD,” Jara said in a statement.
The district said in a statement that money for the chief of staff position was available through the consolidation of existing positions, but did not say what those positions were.
The hires are just the start of Jara’s plan to transform the district.
On Thursday, he announced the goal of making the Clark County School District the “No. 1 district for kids,” without explaining precisely what that means.
He also released what he called an entry plan that emphasizes listening to the community increasing academic achievement and fully