This week’s topic was a hard subject to research. I don’t have children, those of most of my friends are grown (and very few were educated in the Clark County public schools), and although I was once married to a school teacher, she taught in Ohio, not Nevada.
Luckily, The Nevada Independent, a first-rate online news service covering Silver State politics, recently held a Saturday afternoon symposium featuring informative and provocative panel discussions with school administrators, teachers, parents, and some very bright students. That event, combined with informal discussions with local parents and folks who work in the system, has given me enough information to be reasonably conversant.
This week’s topic is also hard to write about. There’s very little good news about Clark Country schools and there’s not even a lit match at the end of the long tunnel. The simple truth (told again and again at the NI event) is that Clark Country schools are seriously underfunded. This leads to very large class sizes, overworked dispirited teachers and support staff (especially in guidance and related mental-health areas), poorly maintained school buildings, and even a bus-driver shortage.
Nevada ranks dead last in the amount of money spent per public-school pupil. Most of the funding comes from the state capital where every two years, legislators argue how much money they can give to the schools without seriously hurting other programs, including infrastructure and public safety. In all honesty, another source of funds (a.k.a. taxes) is required if Nevada is going to seriously address this issue.
The other problem is that the sheer size of the Clark County system (one of the largest in the U.S.) limits both community investment and especially parental involvement in the local public schools. Even folks like myself who don’t have children would be more amenable to a tax increase if we knew it was benefiting the local high school, not one 35 miles away. According to one of the speakers at the symposium, active parental involvement in education increases its value $1,000 per child per year, but at least on that score, the system appears to be moving in the right direction setting up official and informal parent-input networks at each school.
Based on discussions I’ve had with contented parents, the main advice boils down to: Get involved.
The first step is doing your homework. If you’re considering moving your family to or relocating within the valley, check out Clark County public schools with good records. Within the last month, I’ve heard glowing reports from parents who have children in (or have recently graduated from) several Las Vegas high schools, including those located in Summerlin, Green Valley, Henderson, and Boulder City. Reviews of these and other schools can be found at https://www.niche.com/k12/search/best-public-high-schools/c/clark-county-nv/.
The Clark County School District offers magnet programs (including the nationally acclaimed Las Vegas Academy of the Arts), as well as some highly rated career and technical academies. Information on both can be found on the CCSD’s website https://www.ccsd.net.
Charter schools can also be found throughout Las Vegas Valley. Go to http://charter.ccsd.net/ or contact the CCSD Office of Charter Schools.
Finally, Las Vegas is home to several nationally recognized private schools, including the Meadows and Faith Lutheran in Summerlin and the perennial state-football power-house Bishop Gorman High School, which also has one of the largest alumni networks in the valley.
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