Celebrating Progress and Confronting Challenges in Nevada Education

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 students have been learning in buildings over a century old without proper heating, cooling, or technology infrastructure, and in many cases, unsafe conditions. The passage of AB224 will finally provide funding for a new K–8 school, giving these students the safe, modern learning environment they deserve.

As an organization committed to every Nevada student, ENN has long advocated for a solution in White Pine. We are deeply grateful to the Legislature and Governor for making this investment on behalf of the community’s children.

Before the board recognition, Assemblymember Mosca and ENN Executive Director Amanda Morgan joined Superintendent Adam Young to visit classrooms, meet students, and hear their hopes for their new school building.

White Pine is a unique, tight-knit community—small enough that the Superintendent also served as the choir teacher and where students and educators truly know one another. Like all Nevada students, White Pine’s children are bright, curious, and eager to learn. Assemblymember Mosca shared how the legislative process works, explaining that even though her district is in East Las Vegas, her duty is to do right by all Nevadans.

Students impressed everyone with their knowledge about the bill—they knew the funding amount and why it mattered. When asked what they wanted in their new school, their answers were simple yet powerful: “sinks that won’t fall off the wall,” stalls in the bathrooms (yes, stalls in the bathroom), fire sprinklers and a playground.The day concluded with a heartfelt recognition from the board, along with superhero capes and handmade plaques made by Lundy students that read: “In recognition of your dedication to all Nevada’s students.”

We are thrilled for the White Pine community and can’t wait for the groundbreaking in the coming months! We want to send a special thank you to White Pine County for their hospitality and to Assemblymember Erica Mosca for making all this possible with her leadership and passion for education.

Assemblymember Erica Mosca, ENN Executive Director Amanda Morgan and White Pine County School District Superintendent Adam Young. 

Assemblymember Erica Mosca and Amanda Morgan talk to students to learn about what they want in a new building. 

Assemblymember Erica Mosca looking up when kids said they wished their classroom had fire sprinklers. 

A list students started putting together based on what they would like to see in their new school building.

Good News for Student Achievement!

Earlier this month, the Nevada Department of Education announced continued improvements across all areas of the Smarter Balanced Assessment—marking the third consecutive year of statewide gains.

We’re incredibly proud of our students, educators, and families who made these achievements possible.

Additional progress was reflected in the Nevada State Performance Framework (NSPF), the state’s public school rating system:

• 70% of Clark County School District (CCSD) schools showed gains in their ratings.

• The number of 5-star schools at CCSD nearly doubled, rising from 28 to 48.

• Washoe County School District (WCSD) also saw significant improvements and a 70% decrease in chronic absenteeism.

These outcomes demonstrate that increased funding leads to results. The infusion of resources from the 2023 legislative session helped reduce teacher vacancies, provide more training, and deliver critical support that made these gains possible.

Funding Challenges Ahead

Despite recent progress, Nevada schools are once again facing serious funding challenges.

Both Clark County School District and Washoe County School District began the year announcing budget cuts and layoffs.

• CCSD faces a $70 million shortfall, resulting in reduced staff, program cuts (including art, tutoring, and STEM), and even larger class sizes.

• WCSD faces an $18 million deficit caused by similar enrollment declines and funding shifts.

The state's modest $2 per-pupil increase in the most recent legislative session fell far short of offsetting record inflation and other cost pressures. The state also reduced funding for at-risk students, contributing to recent shortfalls.

This cycle is all too familiar in Nevada. Without a stable, adequate revenue structure, school resources continue to rise and fall with the economy.            

Since its inception, the Commission on School Funding has repeatedly made strong recommendations to strengthen Nevada’s K–12 funding system, but the legislature has failed to take meaningful action. WIll academic gains made due to previous investments eventually decline as budgets shrink? We can  do better for our students.

Federal Fallout

As federal COVID relief funds have come to an end, schools are being hit by new uncertainty at the national level. The current administration’s proposed billions in cuts to federal K–12 programs—combined with a government shutdown and litigation over education funding - has left school districts unable to plan for staffing, programming, or long-term investments.

While Nevada schools have made positive strides since the pandemic, they now face mounting political and fiscal challenges that threaten to undo this progress.

Most recently, the U.S. Department of Education laid off nearly its entire Special Education staff. This catastrophic blow to the Department, which has already endured massive lay-offs and cuts, have resulted in fewer than half of its original staffing levels. These lay-offs could affect the delivery of resources to some of our most vulnerable students.  

Perhaps most troubling, these cuts come in the midst of the Trump Administration ushering in a  school voucher program that could cost billions over the next ten years. As a reminder, private schools can and often do reject students for a variety of reasons (including when a student needs special education services), whereas public schools must serve all students. And since private school vouchers often serve the wealthy, the program effectively amounts to a reverse Robin Hood. 

At ENN, we remain committed to ensuring every Nevada student—no matter where they live, who they are, or what their needs are—have access to a quality education, stable funding, and the opportunities they need to thrive. 

We urge you to call your representatives, local, state and national to let them know how school budget cuts affect your students and why we must invest in the future of our state.