It’s no secret Nevada’s education system has long taken a backseat to powerhouse industries like tourism and entertainment — and the consequences are clear.
The state consistently ranks near the bottom nationwide in educational rankings. According to U.S. News & World Report, Nevada is the 14th worst state for education overall and fourth worst in Pre-K through 12th grade. It also faced the worst teacher shortage in the nation for the 2023-2024 school year.
Nevada lawmakers and education advocates have been working to pull the state out of this long-standing slump. Last legislative session, Governor Joe Lombardo signed the largest education budget in Nevada’s history — but critics say it didn’t go far enough. Meanwhile, the Clark County School District — the fifth largest in the nation — struggled with multiple budgeting errors throughout 2024.
Patrick Gibson, deputy executive director of the School and State Finance Project, said the challenges school districts face often come down to instability and communication.
“Deficits or surpluses are a moving target. But when you’re a district you want to make sure that you have control over the story and the messaging,” Gibson said. “So that when [the numbers] get released publicly, you have a number that you can stick with.”
But this session could mark a turning point.
Two major education bills are now on the table: one from Governor Lombardo, the other from Senate Majority Leader Nicole Cannizzaro. Katy Futterman, a breaking news reporter for the Las Vegas Review-Journal who’s been covering education legislation this session, said both proposals aim to improve oversight, but with vastly different strategies.
“The two different bills both focus on accountability, but in different ways,” Futterman said. “Cannizaro’s bill focuses on creating a school district oversight board. [While] Lombardo also focuses on school districts as a whole, his [bill] includes more punitive measures, if [districts] fail to improve.”
Not everyone believes the governor’s approach offers the right solution. Alexander Marks, deputy executive director of Field and Communications, criticized the governor’s proposal for lacking financial backing.
“Accountability doesn’t replace funding. We’ve dubbed the Governor’s bill, ‘blame without a budget.’ There's a lot of accountability in there,” Marks said. “There’s not any support there. His bill is very aggressive on mandates, very silent on solutions.”
At the same time, parents and teachers are voicing their own frustrations. Especially when it comes to how CCSD manages their budget. Rebecca Dirks-Garcia, a board member for the Nevada Parent Teacher Association, said families are growing increasingly impatient with the lack of communication and change from CCSD.
“They want less talk, less words, and more results as to what's going to happen for their kids,” Dirks-Garcia said. “I'm really concerned about anything that comes out of the legislature that removes transparency for the community.”
And a note, we did invite the Clark County School District, but did not get a response.
Guests: Rebecca Dirks Garcia, board member, Nevada Parent Teacher Association; Katy Futterman, breaking news reporter, Las Vegas Review-Journal; Alexander Marks, deputy executive director of field and communications, Nevada State Education Association; Patrick Gibson, deputy executive director, school and state finance project.
