Taking a giant leap forward in preparing young students for a hands-on experience in the construction industry is something more schools should do. The lack of Vo-Tech schools is hopefully going to be a thing of the past if this Las Vegas trade school is any indication.
The Nevada State Public Charter School Authority’s board voted Monday unanimously to approve a new high school focused on construction professions.
Southern Nevada Trades High School is scheduled to open in August 2023 on Bledsoe Lane in Las Vegas — initially, with up to 200 students in ninth and 10th grades. It plans to gradually expand.
After sharing his own experience as a student, school board chairman Brett Willis — who owns Silver Lake Construction Company — said, “I’m still concerned that students are not getting a positive exposure to the trades.”
The school aims to fix that, he said, noting there’s a need to let students see how academics and career and technical education reinforce each other.
As part of the school’s approval, it must meet a handful of state conditions by certain deadlines, such as providing a plan for hiring a principal, a fully executed agreement with ACE High School in Reno for “ongoing services and supports,” a revised budget that includes an English-language learner teacher during the first year, and completing a pre-opening process for new charter schools.
Southern Nevada Trades High School is modeling itself after ACE High School, a public charter school sponsored by the Washoe County School District.
ACE is the gold standard as far as community and school partnerships, charter authority board Chairwoman Melissa Mackedon said.
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