Charter schools are another public school option in Nevada. Like traditional schools, they are free for all students to attend.
These schools have grown in popularity over the years as families look for options that can better meet their student’s needs, such as smaller class sizes and more flexibility, than a large school district.
The State Public Charter School Authority recently became the second largest school district with more than 70,000 students, according to student counts as of last October.
They are overseen by a sponsor, which approves their application to open, sets up a contract they must follow and can close a school if they aren’t meeting the expectations outlined in their contract.
The State Public Charter School Authority is the main sponsor in the state, but some charter schools are also sponsored by a school district such as Washoe County and Carson City. In 2023, lawmakers passed a bill (AB400) that allowed cities and counties to apply to be charter school authorizers. So far, only the cities of Henderson and North Las Vegas have applied and been approved, and Henderson has already approved one application from a Hebrew-language charter school.
Like school districts, charter schools are governed by school boards, but their members are all appointed instead of elected by local voters (though the Clark County School District now has a hybrid board made up of 11 elected and appointed members).
They receive state funding per student, just as school districts do, but they don’t have access to other public funds, such as property tax revenue to fund their facilities. As a result, some charter schools rent spaces in existing private property, such as a church, recreation center, a repurposed grocery store or a shopping mall.
The majority of the state’s charter schools are in urban areas, such as Clark and Washoe counties, but there are a few in rural parts of the state, such as Ely, Elko and Fallon.
Like in school districts’ open enrollment process, students can generally attend the charter school of their choice regardless of whether they live near the school. Some charter schools accept students who reside anywhere in the county they are located. Other charter schools extend their nets to their neighboring counties. Two online charter schools, Leadership Academy of Nevada and Nevada Connections Academy, serve students statewide. Delta Academy in Las Vegas offers in-person, hybrid and online learning options.
Here’s what you need to know about charter schools.
What grade levels do charter schools serve?
It depends.
Mater Academy of Nevada, which has multiple campuses in the Las Vegas area, and Coral Academy of Science – Nellis Air Force Base offer a free pre-K to eligible families.
Mater Academy of Nevada has four campuses in Las Vegas that serve various grade levels. One campus serves students in kindergarten through 12th grade, a second serves students kindergarten through fifth grade, and two others serve students in kindergarten through eighth grade.
Nevada Classical Academy Elko, which opened August 2025, is accepting students in kindergarten through third grade for the 2025-26 school year, and will ramp up by one grade level until it eventually becomes a K-12 school, said Principal Brandolyn Than.
Doral Academy of Northern Nevada in Reno serves students from kindergarten through eighth grade.
Delta Academy in Las Vegas serves students from sixth through 12th grade.
Young Women’s Leadership Academy is accepting students in grades sixth through 10 and will eventually ramp up to serve sixth through 12th graders.
Are there any qualifications that students need to meet?
By state law, as a public school, charter schools must take in any student regardless of their race, gender identity, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation or whether they have a disability, provided they have availability. Charter School Association of Nevada President Selena Torres-Fossett, who is also a Nevada Democrat Assembly member, said they also can’t deny students based on their academic ability, such as their grades, credits or grade point average, or whether they are learning English as a second language.
State statute allows for charter schools to provide programs or services that tailor to a specific group such as students with disabilities, students with severe disciplinary problems or a single gender.
Torres-Fossett is the executive director of Young Women’s Leadership Academy, a Las Vegas charter school that serves middle and high school students. She said her school’s curriculum is geared to girls and 100 percent of students are female, but nothing bars a male student from applying.
Like traditional schools, they don’t charge tuition.
How do I apply for a charter school?
Open enrollment periods vary from school to school. The State Public Charter School Authority has a webpage with a map of where all the charter schools are, what grades they serve, when their open enrollment periods begin and end. and when their lottery will be held, if they have one. Some charter schools accept applications on an ongoing basis for future openings.
There’s no limit to how many applications you can submit.
Under state law, charter schools can give enrollment priority to certain students such as those who have a sibling currently enrolled in the school, are considered at-risk or are the child of an employee, founding committee member or board member of the school they want to attend. Melissa Mackedon, the State Public Charter School Authority’s executive director, said these students would get first dibs on a seat without needing to go through a lottery.
Generally, once a student is accepted into a charter school, they don’t need to reapply each year to stay.
If a school gets more applications than seats available, they will select students using a lottery system.
Some schools provide weights in the lottery for certain students, such as those who qualify for free or reduced lunch or attend or are zoned for a one- or two-star school.
Applicants who are not offered a seat are generally placed on a wait list and could be offered a seat later if one becomes available.
Is transportation provided?
It depends.
In 2023, the Legislature for the first time allocated $14 million in transportation funding for the 2023-24 and 2024-25 school years that charter schools could apply for as part of Gov. Joe Lombardo’s education omnibus bill (AB400), and last year the Legislature passed a bill (SB468) appropriated $17 million for the next two school years.
This funding, which charter schools had to apply for, allowed some to buy their school buses or shuttles, which Mater Academy East did, or hire a third-party vendor that has buses and drivers, which can be more cost effective and is what Young Women’s Leadership Academy did.
Before 2023, only a handful of charter schools were able to offer transportation.
But Mackedon said the demand for the funding was greater than the availability.
Schools such as Doral Academy of Northern Nevada in Reno and Nevada Classical Academy Elko don’t offer any transportation.
Delta Academy Superintendent Kyle Konold said his school offers bus passes to students.
Are athletics and extracurricular opportunities provided?
It ranges from school to school.
Doral Academy of Northern Nevada Principal Angela Orr said her school offers middle school athletics, such as track and cross-country, and boys and girls basketball and volleyball.
In addition to a wide range of electives such as coding and theater, Doral Academy of Northern Nevada students also compete in robotics and HOSA — Future Health Professionals (formerly known as Health Occupations Students of America).
Konold said Delta Academy doesn’t have the space to provide athletics, though there is an expansion project in the works to add a gym in the next three or four years. He added that under state law, students are allowed to play for their zoned school if the school they attend doesn’t offer the sport they want. The school offers programs on drones, photography and performing arts.
Torres-Fossett said Young Women’s Leadership Academy offers basketball and flag football for middle schoolers, and track and soccer for high schoolers.
If a student is accepted, how long does the student commit to staying at the school?
There’s no commitment time period. If the charter school is not a good fit, students can return to their zoned school.
Orr said that has rarely happened at her five-star school, which is why it’s hard to find an open seat there.
“We hope that what we offer is appealing and that people want to stay,” she said.