Gov. Sandoval dedicates second term to education, Nevada’s youth

Gov. Brian Sandoval told a crowd of more than 200 he would dedicate his second four-year term to Nevada’s young people and their education.

He made the statement in a brief inaugural address after he and five other constitutional officers took the oath of office on the Capitol steps Monday in Carson City.

In a press conference afterward, Sandoval signed an executive order establishing a business roundtable for education policy reform he said would develop recommendations on how to ensure that Nevada’s K-12 and higher education systems provide graduates with the necessary training to meet the needs of those businesses. Sandoval said that means developing specific training programs for the private sector in conjunction with business.

He said the partnerships between Nevada businesses and the state’s schools are critical to improving the education system so that Nevadans get the high-tech jobs now coming to the state.

That roundtable will consist of up to 13 members headed by either the state Superintendent of Education or some one from the state Board of Education. The members haven’t yet been named but a spokesman said the governor hopes to have the group up and running by February when the Legislature convenes.

But, as he has in the past, Sandoval refused to explain how he will fund those reforms and expansions, saying simply that information would come Jan. 15 when he delivers his State of the State Address to the Nevada Legislature.

“There are going to be some difficult decisions to be made but they have to be made to move our state forward,” Sandoval said.

Sandoval said Nevada’s young people “will write the Nevada story for tomorrow; they are Nevada’s generations to come and I dedicate all my work as governor to their ultimate success.”

He said the state has built the foundation for the future, pointing to the Tesla Motors battery factory deal as evidence of that foundation. He said the unemployment rate has fallen from 13.9 percent to 6.9 percent and almost 100,000 more Nevadans are working than four years ago.

But Sandoval said the state must continue on that path, improving K-12 and the university system, affordable access to health care and a stronger economic base.

“We have set the state for a future that may even surpass our pioneering past,” he said.

Sandoval was the only returning constitutional officer, the other five incumbents being termed out after eight years in office.

Before he took the oath for a second term, the new officers were sworn in. They are Lt. Gov. Mark Hutchison, Secretary of State Barbara Cegavske, Attorney General Adam Laxalt, Treasurer Dan Schwartz and Controller Ron Knecht — all Republicans.

In addition, Supreme Court Chief Justice Jim Hardesty swore in two returning members of the Nevada Supreme Court: Kris Pickering and Mark Gibbons. Earlier in the day, he swore in the three members of the newly created intermediate appellate court: Michael Gibbons, Abbi Silver and Jerome Tao.

After, he also signed an executive order to designate the historic Senate chamber in the Capitol building as Battle Born Hall.