The Ed-Watch series is designed to increase access to information on decisions being made regarding public education in Clark County and Nevada.
Nevada State Board of Education
What is the State Board of Education & what are they responsible for? The Nevada State Board of Education adopts regulations based on Nevada laws, which are passed down to individual school districts in Nevada to implement. The Board has 11 total (7 appointed and 4 publicly elected) members.
How often does the State Board meet? The Nevada State Board of Education meets once per month on Thursdays at 9:00 AM or 2:00 PM. Click here to see the 2022 Board Meeting Schedule. Click here to visit Hope For Nevada’s #NVEd Calendar.
Can community members engage at State Board Meetings? A time for public comment is provided at the beginning (for agenda items) and at the conclusion (on any matter) of each Board meeting. Members of the public may provide public comment in writing via email; public comment will be accepted via email for the duration of the meeting and shared with the State Board of Education during the public comment periods. Public comment may be emailed to NVBoardED@doe.nv.gov.
Click here for a list of all State Board Members.
Thursday, November 3, 2022
Nevada State Board of Education Meeting
Click here to see the regular SBOE meeting agenda.
Click here to watch the meeting playback.
What happened at the regular meeting?
Public Comment #1
Public comment was heard on the following subjects:
- Student discipline data disparities
- State Public Charter School Authority appointments
- College and Career Readiness High School Assessment process and student involvement
President’s Report
Highlights included:
- The Department held the Nevada Future of Learning network convening in October. Discussion included the “Portrait of the Learner” initiative, competency-based education, and what stakeholders want kids to be able to do when they graduate from high school. Highlights from the event include a student panel, and discussions on future jobs and community engagement.
- The December Board meeting will include community stakeholders, school districts, and charter schools to review their progress in 2022.
- A stakeholders’ meeting for NRS 385.040 was held.
- The NSHE Board of Regents’ representative on the Board reported that 2022-2023 enrollment is slightly down for the system. A committee to review the roles and responsibilities of the chancellor is underway. The Regents are currently awaiting the Governor’s proposed budget and the 2023 legislative session.
Superintendent’s Report
- Several new staff positions were announced.
- The Advanced Career and Technical Education Conference will be held in Las Vegas from November 30 – December 3.
- Nevada was selected to participate in the National P-3 Institute Annual Conference.
Board Approved Consent Agenda
Consent agenda items included:
- Private school consent agenda
- FY23 Annual Class Size Reduction Plans
- Commission on Professional Standards in Education Regulations
- 2023 Board of Education Meeting Schedule
Explore the consent agenda items.
Board Received a Presentation on the English Mastery Council Final Report
The English Mastery Council (EMC) was charged with making recommendations concerning criteria for District English Learner (EL) policy, reviewing district EL policies, making recommendations concerning requirements to teach English as a Second Language (ESL), and making recommendations for standards and criteria for curriculum for English learners.
Recommendations from the EMC include:
- Amending regulatory language for endorsements to teach a program of bilingual education
- Providing targeted funding for students in the lowest 25th percentile of English language academic achievement, equivalent to funding provided for EL students
- Requiring each district to create a policy and implementation plan for meeting the needs of students performing in the lowest 25th percentile of English language academic achievement
- Requiring schools in the lowest 25th percentile of English language academic achievement to develop a corrective action plan
- Requiring all school districts to create a detailed EL plan to implement their EL policy, regardless of the number of ELs in the district and even if there are not ELs currently identified in the district, and specifying ELD curriculum materials and instructional methods
- Properly and accurately identifying EL students to avoid over-identification of special education students and under-identification of GATE students
- Conducting professional development to improve instruction and assessment for ELs
- Increasing educator capacity through opportunities such as recruiting and incentivizing teachers with TESL/ELAD endorsements or those with equity and evidence training
- Requiring districts to establish procedures and opportunities for parents of EL students to provide feedback and recommendations on EL programming
Some members of the Board will be participating in a sub-committee to continue this discussion further and prioritizing recommendations from the EMC.
Explore the presentation.
Board Awarded Teach Nevada Scholarships
The Board approved $2.5 million in awards for the Teach Nevada Scholarships – Phase II. These scholarships will be distributed to Clark County School District, Great Basin College, UNLV, UNR, and Washoe County School District, in multiple programs.
Explore the presentation and awards.
Board Reviewed the Draft Survey and Process for the College and Career Readiness High School Assessment RFP Survey
Beginning in 2018, Nevada began to use the ACT as the state’s college and career readiness assessment, and the process for that assessment is up for review. The Board reviewed the draft survey and process for obtaining public comment for the RFP process for the College and Career Readiness High School Assessment.
Several of the questions have been shortened and simplified from a version previously presented to the Board. A question was added on career readiness to the survey, and the survey will proceed.
Explore the survey draft.
Board Received a Presentation on Discipline Data, Disaggregated by Population
The Board received a presentation on discipline data disaggregated by student groups. Disparities persist with suspensions and expulsions among white, Black, and Hispanic students. Additional data was presented on different types of disciplinary infractions, as well as on the approach to improve school climate. The approach includes the Multi-Tiered Systems of support, restorative justice practices, and social and emotional learning.
Explore the presentation and data.
Board Received a Presentation on the Nevada Educator Performance Framework Summative Evaluation Ratings and Survey Data
This presentation is part of an annual review of the statewide performance evaluation system. On the Nevada Educator Performance Framework (NEPF), there was an increase in teachers rated as highly effective, and a decrease in teachers rated as effective. There was also a slight increase in administrators rated effective, and a decrease in administrators rated highly effective.
Staff also reviewed results from the annual Monitoring for Continuous Improvement (MCI) educator surveys. About 24% of administrators and 31% of teachers responded, with most respondents agreeing that the evaluation helped identify areas of growth and focused more on professional growth rather than awarding a score or rating. Most respondents also agreed that feedback positively impacted instructional/leadership practice.
Explore the presentation and results.
Board Selected an Appointee to the Nevada State Public Charter School Authority Board
The Board appointed Cindi Rivera as a Board of Education appointee to the Nevada State Public Charter School Authority Board. Rivera will serve on the SPCSA board for the duration of an unexpired term ending June 30, 2024.
Explore the candidates’ applications.
Board Discussed a Position Statement for the Upcoming 2023 Legislative Session
The Board discussed a revised version of its position statement on additional funding from the 2023 legislative session. Additional edits were made to underscore the impact of the areas of focus (educator recruitment, training retention, and support; pre-k programs; and infrastructure) on student outcomes, add a statement that funding alone will not solve the challenges outlined and to explore additional pathways to address these challenges, and incorporate other changes prior to sending.
Explore the draft position statement.
Board Conducted a Public Hearing for Temporary Regulation #T005-22
The Board conducted a public hearing for Temporary Regulation #T005-22, which would lower the weight of an end-of-course final from the currently required 20% of a student’s final course grade to 5% of a student’s final course grade for the 2022-2023 school year; and request that for 2022-2023 school year, only Math I, Integrated Math I, and ELA I-Reading Comprehension End of Course (EOC) assessments are administered, scored, and used in a student’s final course grade. This change would remove the Math II, Integrated Math II, and ELA II exams from being administered in the 2022-2023 school year.
Explore the proposed regulation and public hearing materials.
Board Conducted a Public Hearing for Temporary Regulation #T007-22
The Board conducted a public hearing for Temporary Regulation #T007-22, regarding the uniform grading scale for all public high schools to include dual credit courses and assign the same weight for such courses assigned to advanced placement courses.
Explore the proposed regulation and public hearing materials.
Future Agenda Items
The December meeting will include the annual stakeholders’ meeting to discuss benchmarks and goals.
Public Comment #2
Public comment was heard on the following subjects:
- Monthly payments from the Pupil Centered Funding Plan
- Math achievement and math teacher shortages
- Equity in language access regarding school nurses and health staff
The next Board of Education meeting is scheduled at 2:00 p.m. on Thursday, December 15, 2022.
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