Nevada Ed-Watch: Washoe County School District 5/26/26

Washoe County School District Board of Trustees

What is the Board of Trustees & what are they responsible for? The Washoe County School District Board of Trustees are publicly elected decision-makers for the school district. They are responsible for providing oversight to the Superintendent and establishing District-wide policy. Trustees are accountable to work with their communities to improve student achievement.

Click here to learn more and see a list of current Trustees.

How often does the Board of Trustees meet? Trustees meet twice per month (second and fourth Tuesdays) at 2 pm both virtually and at the Central Administration Building Board Room, 425 E. 9^th St., Reno, NV 89512.

Click here for a full list of Trustees meetings.

Can community members engage at Trustee meetings? Decision-making bodies benefit greatly from hearing public input and multiple perspectives. Currently, members of the public can submit comments on agenda and non-agenda items through email or voice recording. Public comment can be provided in person or via email. Email comments should be submitted to publiccomments@washoeschools.net.

Tuesday, May 26, 2026

Washoe County School District Board of Trustees Meeting

Click here to see the meeting agenda.
Watch the meeting playback.

Trustees Approved the Consent Agenda

Consent agenda highlights include:

• Renewal of the informal contract with  Jobs for Nevada Graduates in the amount of $176,000
• Several approvals of various awards and bids
• Several facilities items

Explore the consent agenda here.

Trustees Received a Presentation and Public Hearing on the Fiscal Year 2026-27 tentative budget for all District Funds and Approved the Fiscal Year 2026-27 Final Budget.

Trustees received a presentation and held a public hearing on the Fiscal Year 2026-27 tentative budget for all district funds, and approved the Fiscal Year 2026-27 final budget.

Highlights of the presentation included:

• A budget shortfall of $ 15 million was discussed. Along with a small increase in base-per-pupil funding for the biennium, increased costs for goods and services due to inflation resulted in a $10 million budget shortfall, and enrollment declines resulted in a $5 million shortfall.
• The ending fund balance would need to increase by $15.2 million in order to reach the target ending fund balance of 12.0% 
• The Contingency Account (Board Policy 3051) is .25% lower than the target, currently budgeted for $5 million. 

Explore the presentation.

Trustees Adopted Washoe County School District Board Resolution 26-004, a Resolution in Support of "iNVest 2027," a Nevada Association of School Superintendents Document Supporting Public Education in Nevada. 

Trustees adopted Washoe County School District Board Resolution 26-004, a Resolution in Support of "iNVest 2027" a Nevada Association School Superintendents Document Supporting Public Education in Nevada. These were based on the four primary policies of Stabilize School Budgets, Explore New Revenue, Ensure Sustainability, and Flexibility in Educator Pay.

Highlights of the iNVest 2027 document: 

• iNVest 2027 lists four primary policies:
  • • Stabilize School Budgets: Protect districts from sudden funding drops during enrollment declines by adjusting statutory timelines and count days within the Pupil-Centered Funding Plan.
    • Explore New Revenue: Partner with the State to identify alternative funding sources for the State Education Fund.
    • Ensure Sustainability: Support long-term, sustainable funding for all school districts.
  • • Flexibility in Educator Pay: Support differential pay for educators, provided it is either permissive or fully funded by the state.
      
      iNVest 2027 articulates the four points below as the key focus areas for student success: 

1. 1. Increase and align education funding to ensure that resources match student needs. 
   2. Refine SB 460 (2025) to more effectively and positively impact school district operations and student success.
   3. Strengthen early literacy supports without harmful student retention requirements.
   4. Stabilize, align, and expand Pre-K funding structures. 

Explore the board resolution (26-004) and the "iNVest 2027."  

Trustees Received a Presentation and Approved the Board of Trustees to Provide Direction to Update the Washoe County School District Legislative Platform for the 2027 Nevada Legislative Session and Biennium 

Trustees received a presentation and provided direction on updates to the Washoe County School District Legislative Platform in preparation for the 2027 Nevada Legislative Session and Biennium. 

Highlights of the presentation included: 

• Priority suggestions included 27 proposals across 6 key areas: 
  •  Student Safety & Welfare
  • Literacy & Young Learners
  • Academic Pathways
  • Operations
  • Special Education Reforms, and
  • Personnel
• The board is required to vote in August on their final Bill Draft Requests (BDRs), for filing to the Legislative Counsel Bureau by Sept 1., 2026.

Trustees discussed the need to place greater focus on Special Education and SpEd students and to include stronger language regarding chronic absenteeism. 

Explore the presentation.

Trustees Report

Report highlights included:

• Trustees attended a groundbreaking event at Echo Loder Elementary School. 

• 10-year WC1 (sales tax measure) celebration held at Debbie Smith Career & Technical Academy.

• Trustee Woodley congratulated TMCC High School on its Nevada Blue Ribbon Recognition from the state (for being a high-achieving dual-enrollment model). 

Superintendents Report

Report highlights included:

• 20th anniversary of Jesse Hall Elementary School, in which former students submitted videos of where they are now as adults to show the current student body.

• Shouting out the large number of field trips and community outreach programs. 

• Reiterating support for the schools that were previously highlighted by the Trustees.

The next Meeting of the Board of Trustees is scheduled for June 9th, 2026, at 2:00 p.m.