Last week, Gov. Joe Lombardo announced he’s appointing Steve Canavero to serve as the interim state superintendent of public instruction. He will officially take over the office on April 14 from current State Superintendent Jhone Ebert, who was selected as the new Clark County School District superintendent last month. Canavero served as the state superintendent under former Gov. Brian Sandoval prior to Ebert, and resigned in 2019 for personal reasons. He was also the first executive director of the State Public Charter School Authority, which oversees the state’s charter schools.  

It’ll be interesting to see how he navigates the Trump administration’s push to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education and threats to funding while he tries to shepherd Lombardo's education priorities in the crucial last half of the legislative session.

I want to hear from you! Send questions, comments or suggestions on what I should be covering to [email protected]. 

News briefs

🍎 Bill seeks to protect students with disabilities amid federal uncertainty — As President Donald Trump takes next steps to unwind the U.S. Department of Education, a bill from Sen. Lori Rogich (R-Las Vegas), SB368, would set up a trigger in case the educational rights of students with disabilities are put in jeopardy.

• Context: The federal Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA) guarantees that students with disabilities have the right to a free and appropriate education. The act also provides $15 billion in funding to schools to offer special education services to students. 
• A day after Trump signed an executive order on March 20 calling for the dismantling of the U.S. Department of Education, he announced that special education programs would now be handled by the Department of Health and Human Services.
  • Legal experts say Trump needs congressional approval to make both of these changes.
• Some Republican governors are also called for the Trump administration to send federal aid for schools as a single grant or block grant, which would allow them to put some of those funds toward private school and religious education options. Opponents say this could come at the cost of funding dedicated for students in special education programs or from low-income households. 
• Rogich became an advocate after spending years in a legal fight against the Clark County School District after it failed to provide her daughter, who is diagnosed with dyslexia, with necessary services. 
• If IDEA is repealed, Rogich's bill would codify the protections and rights guaranteed by the federal act into state law. An amendment she has proposed requires that any funds received to fund special education, including those received as a federal block grant without specific conditions attached by the federal government, shall be used exclusively to provide services to students who are eligible under the IDEA and to identify and evaluate pupils who may be eligible for such services under IDEA.
  • “Education is a fundamental right, and it is our moral and legal obligation to ensure that all children, including those with disabilities, have access to quality education,” Rogich said in a Wednesday hearing.

Assm. Selena Torres-Fossett (D-Las Vegas) has introduced a similar bill, AB494, which goes further than Rogich’s bill and would also codify federal laws that restrict the release of medical information and student education records and prohibits discrimination in federally supported educational programs or activities.

School Spotlight

Nonprofit championing $4 million bill to continue support for school garden programs

Fifth grade student Kylee Saddle, 10, isn’t afraid to get her hands dirty as she walks through the indoor and outdoor gardens at Empire Elementary School in Carson City on a March morning. 

Saddle said she feels proud of herself as she points to the basil, mint, tomatoes and kale. 

The school is one of the more than 400 K-12 schools across 16 of the state’s 17 counties that received support from Green our Planet, a Las Vegas-based nonprofit that provides grants, equipment and training to start gardens and hydroponic laboratories — soil-free growing systems that can be set up indoors — to schools nationwide and internationally, especially Title I schools that have a large percentage of students from low-income families. 

The nonprofit also hosts farmers markets in Northern and Southern Nevada where students have the opportunity to sell the produce they grow alongside handmade crafts, sometimes also made with materials found in their gardens. 

The program provides students with science, math, nutrition, entrepreneurial and conservation project-based learning opportunities that go beyond their textbooks. 

Fifth grade student Itzel Zambrano, 10, said she enjoys being able to get out of the classroom and work with hands. 

“I learn it faster, and it's easier to understand because I'm actually working with it,” she said.

In 2023, the nonprofit received $3 million in state funding to expand its program — one of many nonprofit beneficiaries of the so-called “Christmas tree” bills that were heavily criticized by Republican lawmakers as “pork.” But Gov. Joe Lombardo signed the bills, and the funding allowed Green our Planet to expand to 250 new schools.  

Sen. Julie Pazina (D-Las Vegas) has introduced a bill, SB104, that would appropriate $4 million across the next two years to create and maintain the school gardens program and provide training for teachers. The funding can also be used to host more student farmers market events across the state. 

“I feel like our teachers and our school districts get bad raps, but I think … the fact that schools are willing and want to do this shows me that they want to go the extra 10 miles for our kids,” said Green our Planet Co-Founder and Co-CEO Ciara Byrne. 

The program also ties in with Empire’s Green Biz Kids club that Saddle and Zambrano are part of. The club was formed in 2021 by Empire’s science, math, technology and engineering coordinator, Adrienne Wiggins, and advocates for responsible environmental and conservation practices. 

In 2023, the school was recognized by the Nevada Green Business Network as Nevada’s first green certified school. The network said in a Facebook post it was impressed by the club’s initiatives to reduce school food and Styrofoam waste and increase districtwide sustainability. 

“I think other people should step up and try to make this world more beautiful than it already is,” Saddle said. “It can’t just be one school.” 

Have a student or staffer who we should feature in the next edition of School Spotlight? Share your nominations with me at [email protected].

Reading Assignments

Trump administration cancels $8M for Nevada schools, food banks to buy from local farms

The program cancellation is part of the administration’s overall push for fiscal responsibility through spending cuts.

Indy Explains: What are open enrollment policies, and what do Nevada lawmakers want to change?

Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo is taking a new approach to fulfill his school choice agenda, while a bill by a Democrat would standardize existing policies.

Extra Credit

Las Vegas Review-Journal: Clark County School Board expected to vote to officially terminate ex-CFO

The district’s former chief financial officer was let go after it discovered errors that led to a budget crisis. 

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