If you want to know what’s working in Nevada’s education system, just look south of Las Vegas to Sloan Canyon.
While the Clark County School District (CCSD) continues to struggle with low performance and chronic absences, Sloan Canyon’s K–12 charter school is quietly setting the bar – earning a perfect sweep of 5-star ratings across its elementary, junior high, and high school campuses in 2024.
Let that sink in: three schools, three top ratings.
It’s a standout example of what education can look like when the system puts students first and red tape second.
Sloan Canyon: A 5-Star Success Story
Run by Pinecrest Academies, the Sloan Canyon campus offers K–12 education that’s getting results – and the numbers prove it.
- Pinecrest Elementary – Sloan Canyon: ★★★★★
- Pinecrest Junior High – Sloan Canyon: ★★★★★
- Pinecrest High School – Sloan Canyon: ★★★★★
According to the Nevada Report Card, all three levels of the Sloan Canyon campus were awarded 5-star status for 2024 – based on academic performance, student growth, attendance, and readiness for the next grade level.
In a state where even one 5-star school can be hard to find, Sloan Canyon delivered three on the same campus. That’s not just impressive – it’s a model the rest of Nevada should be studying.
And they’re doing it with strong attendance and larger-than-average class sizes.
Teachers at Sloan Canyon show up. Students show up. Learning happens. It’s not complicated – it’s just effective.
Meanwhile in Clark County…
Across town, things don’t look so good for Nevada’s largest school system. The Clark County School District, home to over 300,000 students, received a sobering report card.
According to the 2024 Education Recovery Scorecard, students in CCSD lost nearly a full grade level in reading between 2019 and 2023. That’s not just a dip – it’s a serious academic backslide.
And while math scores saw slight improvements in some grades, CCSD is still trailing state and national averages overall.
The attendance numbers tell part of the story.
Teacher attendance in Clark County averages just 76.7%, compared to over 94% at high-performing charters like Sloan Canyon and Legacy Southwest.
That’s a big gap. And every missed day means more disruption, more substitutes, and less learning.
Charters Are Working. Why Aren’t We Expanding Them?
The Nevada Accountability Portal on the Department of Education Website reports school results and shows how our Nevada Charter schools are spending $8,880 per pupil vs CCSD’s $12,819 per pupil – and yet charter schools have higher proficiency rates across the board in elementary, middle and high schools.
What makes schools like Sloan Canyon successful? In one word: freedom.
Charter schools aren’t bound by the same bloated bureaucracy that burdens traditional public schools.
They can hire the best teachers, adjust quickly when something isn’t working, and tailor their curriculum to students’ needs – not district politics.
Most importantly, charter schools are held accountable.
If they don’t perform, they can be shut down. That’s a level of pressure that CCSD schools simply don’t face – no matter how poorly they perform year after year.
The Usual Pushback – and Why It Falls Flat
Opponents of charter schools love to repeat the same talking points: “Charters take money from public schools.” Or “They cherry-pick students.”
But the facts tell a different story.
Charters like Sloan Canyon serve a wide mix of students – many from middle- and working-class families.
They receive public funding just like traditional schools, but they’re doing more with less.
And when parents flock to them in droves, it’s not because of flashy marketing. It’s because they’re tired of broken promises from a system that’s failing their kids.
It’s Time to Let What Works… Work
Sloan Canyon and other high-performing charter schools in Nevada are proving what’s possible. They’re offering quality education, strong leadership, and measurable results.
Meanwhile, too many students in traditional public schools are falling further behind.
The solution isn’t more money for a broken system.
The solution is expanding what’s working – and that means more support for charter schools, more school choice, and more accountability for everyone.
Our kids deserve better than excuses. Sloan Canyon is showing us what better looks like.
This article was written with the assistance of AI. Please verify information and consult additional sources as needed.
