Newsletter

After thousand of students lose supports and schools lose millions of dollars, the Commission on School Funding will revisit at-risk model

What is unfolding in Nevada’s public schools this past week feels less like routine belt-tightening and more like the arrival of the perfect storm - inconsistent investments, rising employee costs and inflation, and what experts coin the "demographic cliff,” a decline in school enrollment predicted by sinking birth rates. Nevada has experienced a 17.2% decline in fertility rates from 2011 to 2023, the fifth largest drop in the country and well above the national average of 10

White Pine Students to Get a New School! Last week, Educate Nevada Now (ENN) was honored to be recognized alongside Assemblymember Erica Mosca at the White Pine County School District Board Meeting for our work on AB224, a bill championed by Mosca during the 2025 legislative session. This landmark bill directs the State Treasurer to sell $100 million in state-level bonds to fund new school construction in districts unable to raise sufficient local funds. For years, White Pine

With more than a week removed from the Governor’s veto deadline, we take a look back at the good, the bad, and the mostly inconsequential K-12 education legacy of the 83rd Legislative Session. While some efforts were transformative, the session mostly fell short of expectations due to compromises on major issues and the Governor’s eagerness to veto even innocuous and common-sense bills. Though impossible to cover everything here, the following represents some highlights and

Dear friends, We need your support for AB 224! With only two days left in the 83rd Legislative Session, it is urgent that AB 224 gets a hearing in Senate Finance. This bill received bipartisan support through three committees and the Assembly and is now in the hands of the Senate Finance Committee. AB 224 issues bonds to replace century-old schools and DOES NOT NEED A FUNDING APPROPRIATION! Without state support many communities have no way of replacing unsafe and dilapidat

Senate Majority Leader Cannizzaro’s Comprehensive Legislation Expands Oversight, Elevates Early Education, and Strengthens Accountability Carson City, NV — As the 83rd Legislative Session nears its conclusion, Senate Majority Leader Nicole Cannizzaro has introduced SB460 — the EDUCATE Act — a sweeping piece of legislation aimed at transforming Nevada’s public education system with long-overdue oversight and a strong focus on student outcomes. “This bill touches on so many as

Fighting for Adequate Funding, Equity, Safe Facilities, Accountability, and Support for Schools With the 83rd Legislative Session underway, ENN has been actively fighting for Nevada students. Our priorities serve to ensure public schools are able to meet the needs of every student, regardless of their background or zip code. Now, more than ever, lawmakers and our communities must come together to protect and strengthen public education. Our students deserve it.

What can the newly formed Legislative Subcommittee on Education Accountability learn from the most recent K-12 audit? With the first meeting of the Legislative Subcommittee on Education Accountability fast approaching, understanding the recent K-12 audit is critical. Several weeks ago the Nevada Independent published a story about an education audit titled, '"Disturbing:’ Leaders question Nevada K-12 budget expansion after critical audit.” For years the community has been as

Tomorrow the Commission on School Funding hears from formula vendor about why we cap number of at-risk students to support among other concerns. This Friday, Infinite Campus will present to the Commission on School Funding regarding the company’s formula that determines which students are entitled to “at-risk” funding. Since this year’s implementation of Infinite Campus’s “Early Warning System” (“EWS”), many schools have been shocked by the result. The formula has denied fun

Bills to Watch and Ways to Get Involved this Legislative Session With the bill introduction deadline behind us, a better picture emerges of what lawmakers hope to accomplish during the 82nd Legislative Session. Aligned with ENN’s legislative priorities, we have detailed some important bills to watch and ways to participate in the process. ENN aims to support bills that provide additional funding and resources for Nevada’s K-12 public schools, work to solve our teacher rec

Nevada is the only state to receive an "F" in all three grading categories Las Vegas - Nevada students continue to be among the worst funded in the nation, according to the 2022 Making the Grade report released December 13, 2022. The Education Law Center’s annual Making the Grade report examines the condition of public school funding across all 50 states and the District of Columbia. The report ranks and grades each state on three measures to answer the key question: How fai

The election season is getting pretty intense. Political ads have been running non-stop, and it can be hard to know what to prioritize. However, as parents, educators, grandparents and members of the community, we can all agree that the future of our children should be a top priority. That is why we launched the Empower Nevada’s Future Campaign in partnership with the Economic Development Authority of Western Nevada, Empower Nevada’s Teachers, Nevada PTA and Nevadans for the

Court decided constitutional language does not permit them to intervene and decide what is adequate It is with a heavy heart that we announce that the Nevada Supreme Court decided to grant the State’s motion to dismiss Shea v. Nevada, meaning the case cannot move forward. A group of brave families from throughout the state challenged the adequacy of Nevada’s public education system, detailing how grossly inadequate resources led to a system that failed to comply with the Neva

Gov. Sisolak Recovery Framework Announcement Gives Hope for Students Plan should include ARP funds to restore K-12 funding cuts and any pandemic – related shortfalls in roll out of new education funding formula. Las Vegas, NV – Today Governor Sisolak announced the Every Nevadan Recovery Framework meant to serve as a guide for how Nevada’s share of the federal American Rescue Plan (ARP) dollars should be spent. As advocates for Nevada’s K-12 funding system, we look forward

Tight deadlines to make recommendations on time for 81st Legislative Session With the 81st legislative session around the corner, the need for the K-12 Commission on School Funding to finalize its recommendations is more urgent than ever. The last meeting of the year and second to last before the start of session is this Friday, the 18th at 9 a.m. SB 543 (2019), which created the new Pupil Centered Funding Plan (PCFP), requires the commission to work out details to implemen

Optimal funding, the elephant in the room, is up for discussion at tomorrow’s Commission on School Funding meeting. The commission, which recently wrapped up its first year of meetings, has made several recommendations for the legislature to consider. However, and perhaps because it is the most challenging, they have yet to address the issue of optimal funding – or the target level of funding students need to be successful. Last month we summarized the work of the commission

School Funding Commission Still Has Not Addressed Critical Funding Component The Commission on School Funding recently wrapped up nearly a year’s worth of work making several recommendations related to Nevada’s new school funding formula, the Pupil-Centered Funding Plan (PCFP). Their recommendations will be presented to the Legislative Committee on Education at their next meeting. This sets the stage for the implementation of the new formula starting next year and potential

The Commission on School Funding recently wrapped up nearly a year’s worth of work making several recommendations related to Nevada’s new school funding formula, the Pupil-Centered Funding Plan (PCFP). Their recommendations will be presented to the Legislative Committee on Education at their next meeting. This sets the stage for the implementation of the new formula starting next year and potential legislative changes to the PCFP in the upcoming 2021 legislative session. Th

After 12 days of special session the Nevada Legislature wrapped up with a devastating $1.2 billion in cuts to K-12, health and human services and other departments and programs. K-12 was particularly hit with more than $160 million in cuts to major services such as Read by Grade 3 services to support elementary literacy, SB178 which supports resources for vulnerable students and incentives for teachers to teach at disadvantaged schools. A last ditch effort resulted in $50 mil

This Wednesday the 8th, Nevada will convene for a special session to address the budget shortfalls caused by the Coronavirus. While we don’t yet have a clear idea of what level of cuts schools may face, there is no doubt our students may be impacted, as K-12 makes up one third of the state’s budget, which is facing an $800 million shortfall. So far it seems the Nevada Legislature is intending to tap into $400 million of its rainy day fund, but that still leaves another $400