Desert Sands superintendent oversees last board meeting before retirement
The Desert Sands Unified Board of Education bid farewell on Tuesday to Superintendent Scott Bailey. Bailey will retire June 30 after a 32-year career in education that he started as a teacher in Missouri and spent the bulk of as an administrator, principal and teacher in Nevada. He’s been the leader of Desert Sands since 2017.
“In the five-plus years that you’ve been here, you’ve accomplished quite a bit, and you’ve seen us through one of the most difficult times anybody has ever seen,” said Board President Ana Conover.
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Bailey led Desert Sands, the valley's largest school district, through the COVID-19 pandemic, overseeing 34 schools, 2,800 employees and 27,000 students during the district's abrupt transition to distance learning and its 2021 reopening plan. He supported the district's adherence to CDC, state and county public health guidelines related to the virus amid pushback from a vocal group of parents and community members who have protested the district's COVID-19 safety plan for months, sometimes picketing outside the district office and disrupting school board meetings.
“You have put us on track to be literally one of the best districts in the country,” said Trustee Wendy Jonathan, who was on the board when Bailey was hired. She said Bailey lived up to and exceeded high expectations.
"We went to interview you and you said, you know, we may be a gold standard, but you're gonna make us the platinum standard, and you've done that," Jonathan said.
Jonathan commended Bailey’s leadership during the early stages of the pandemic as the district sought to ensure that every student would have capable devices for remote learning in the absence of in-person school. She added she is pleased with the state of the district as Bailey retires to spend more time with family.
“We’re really sitting in a very good spot, and you were the one that had that vision and made it all happen,” Jonathan said. “And I can’t thank you enough for your leadership and what you’ve done for our district.”
Later in Tuesday's meeting, Jonathan announced she herself will be resigning from the school board in August.
Jonathan Horwitz covers education for The Desert Sun. Reach him at jonathan.horwitz@desertsun.com or @Writes_Jonathan.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: DSUSD superintendent oversees last board meeting before retirement
