Magnet schools and career and technical academies are popular school choices within the Clark County School District (CCSD) and the Washoe County School District (WCSD). Some have received national recognition for academic excellence. “Magnet” refers to how the special programming at these schools attracts students from a wide geographic area.
Students must apply to the programs offered by the schools. They range from aviation to culinary arts to performing and creative arts. Though other schools offer similar programs without requiring an application, district officials said the programming at these schools can be more comprehensive.
CCSD launched its first three magnet schools more than 30 years ago. Today, the district has 45 magnet schools and nine career and technical academies. The district said approximately 38,000 students are enrolled at a CCSD magnet school.
These school types are continuously growing in CCSD. This school year, the district had more than 13,000 open magnet school seats, almost 1,000 more than the previous year.
The Washoe County School District has two career academy high schools: the Academy of Arts, Careers, and Technology, established in 2009, and Debbie Smith CTE Academy, opened in August 2025.
The Academy of Arts, Careers, and Technology serves about 600 students and takes in about 150 students as ninth graders each year.
Debbie Smith, which opened in August 2025, started with about 700 students, but will ramp up to more than 800 students next school year, including about 200 freshman students.
How do I apply for one of these schools?
In CCSD, students can apply online for up to three magnet and career and technical academies on the district’s magnet schools page. The deadline for CCSD’s application closes at 3 p.m. Jan. 13, 2026. Late applications may be accepted if there are seats available. Open magnet school seats can be filled until the 10th day of the school year or another specified date.
The applications for Washoe’s Academy of Arts, Careers and Technology and Debbie Smith CTE Academy can be found on the school’s websites. The application is typically open early in the school year for eighth graders entering high school the following year. WCSD students may apply to either or both schools. The application cycle for the 2026-27 school year has already closed but check the school’s website next year for information for the next application cycle.
Are there any qualifications for students?
In CCSD, entry for an elementary-level or middle school-level magnet is open to all.
For high school, some programs are open to all, while others do have criteria that students need to meet based on their grade point average and grades in math, English and science classes. In the case of a visual or performing arts program, students need to pass an audition to be considered.
Students with disabilities are welcome to apply. Gia Moore, the district’s assistant superintendent of the college and career readiness and school choice division, said it’s up to parents to decide if a magnet school will be a good fit for their student.
If parents believe their child has a disability that may affect their ability to fully participate in a program, they are encouraged to provide information about their child’s disability and related needs. Admission criteria will not be waived, but accommodations will be made, where possible, to allow the student to meet the requirements.
Joshua Hartzog, the director of WCSD’s career and technical education department, said it’s recommended that WCSD students have at least a 2.0 grade point average, an attendance rate of at least 90 percent and no major behavioral issues such as drug distribution or possession of a dangerous weapon.
How are students selected?
In both districts, if there are more applicants than seats, qualified students are selected through a computerized, random lottery. Students who aren’t selected in the initial draw are put onto a waitlist. The districts will reach out to the student if a spot in their desired program becomes available.
CCSD gives certain students a higher chance in the lottery if they have a sibling who will be enrolled at the school at the same time, if they live in a designated area near the school or live within the school’s transportation zone, or if they are already magnet school students when they are applying to enter a middle school or high school program.
These additional weights only apply to a student’s top choice.
The district reserves a certain percentage of seats per program for students with one or more of those weights. If the number of qualified students with weights is higher than the percentage of seats reserved, CCSD will randomly select students to fill the seats. The qualified applicants who are not selected will be placed in the general lottery.
What grades can apply to a magnet school or career and technical academy?
At CCSD, the earliest that a student can apply for an elementary magnet school is before entering kindergarten and the latest is typically before entering 10th grade because some programs require that students participate for at least three school years. Las Vegas Academy, Del Sol Academy and some International Baccalaureate programs may accept applications from incoming 11th graders.
Central Technical Training and Academy is only for 11th and 12th grade students. Students can apply for this school during 10th grade.
In WCSD, students typically apply to attend a career academy as eighth graders.
Is transportation provided?
It depends. Some magnet schools and two career and technical academies (Advanced Technologies Academy and Veterans Tribute Career and Technical Academy) provide districtwide transportation busing for students that live farther than 2 miles from their desired school. Others only provide transportation to students who live within the school’s designated transportation zone.
Central Technical Training Academy doesn’t provide district transportation, but its website states monthly city bus passes can be issued when requested. Visit CCSD’s website to check for which schools your student can receive transportation.
WCSD’s career academies provide transportation for students districtwide.
Do magnet schools and career and technical schools provide athletics opportunities?
It depends.
In CCSD, magnet schools offer athletics, but career and technical schools and Las Vegas Academy do not offer sports, with the exception of Southeast Career and Technical Academy, where students can participate in sports such as baseball, cross country, golf, soccer and basketball.
In WCSD, the Academy of Arts, Careers and Technology doesn’t offer sports. At Debbie Smith CTE Academy, students can participate in sports such as cross country, tennis, soccer, wrestling, skiing and basketball, but not football, baseball and softball for its inaugural year. Those sports are expected to be added in the following years.
If a magnet school or career and technical academy doesn’t offer the sport that a student is interested in participating in, students are allowed to play for their zoned school.
Do they provide clubs and extracurricular activities?
CCSD magnet schools and career and technical education programs provide a variety of clubs and extracurricular activities similar to those at traditional district schools.
WCSD’s Academy of Arts, Careers and Technology doesn’t provide performing arts opportunities (the school’s programs are focused on visual arts), so Hartzog said students can join band and choir at their zoned schools.
What happens if a student decides they want to return to their zoned school after the school year begins?
In CCSD, students must stay at their new school for at least one school year before they can return to their zoned school.
In WCSD, students can leave their new school and return to their zoned school at any time in the school year.
Can a student’s placement be revoked?
Yes.
At CCSD, Moore said families sign a magnet contract upon entering. Students are expected to maintain good attendance and a minimum grade point average of 2.0.
Students can be placed on probation for excessive tardiness, absences, poor grades, poor behavior and receiving a suspension.
School officials will schedule a meeting with parents to discuss the conditions of the probation, which can include summer school, after-school tutoring, community service and campus beautification.
Moore said the majority of students are placed back on track, and a small percentage are ultimately dismissed from the program — usually students who have stopped coming to school.
Students who do not meet the obligations of their probation may be dismissed from the program prior to the next school year.
Students who are referred for expulsion and/or are formally expelled may be dismissed from the magnet program.
Hartzog said WCSD also has a system in place to watch for and support struggling students, and returning a student back to their zoned school is a last resort usually reserved for extraordinary circumstances.