Sierra Nevada Academy Charter School (SNACS) has been operating at its current location on Stead Boulevard since it first opened its doors to the community in 1999. From its beginning as the first K-8 charter school in Nevada to being one of the highest achieving schools in the area, Sierra Nevada Academy has consistently demonstrated the accurate way to charter better education for Nevada.  The school was founded 18 years ago and has been operated by Dr. Kimberly Regan ever since. In that time, SNACS faculty has aided the academic achievements and personal development of their students. It is their extensive efforts that have generated the feeling of community that inarguably persists throughout the entire student body and the surrounding region. 

Sierra Nevada Academy Charter School retains an innovative curriculum that fosters an environment for students to learn in a setting custom-tailored to their individual learning styles. Dr. Regan implemented SNACS unique “Choice” program that currently runs in grades K-8. The "Choice" program is a practical series of play and learning activities. It allows students to choose from a sequence of activities with several of them being labeled as “must do”. Through the "Choice" program, educators are enabled to work individually or with small groups that may need additional attention, while simultaneously preserving the quality of education for the entire class. This program not only offers targeted assistance for students in need, but also provides useful information to teachers regarding how students prioritize and make decisions. Through the "Choice" program, educators can monitor the various learning styles and decision-making processes of their students by seeing how they accomplish the “must do” tasks. This permits teachers to identify if an individual is the type of student to complete all the “must do” activates first, spread them out throughout the week, or procrastinate the activities until the due-date. This insight about how students prioritize tasks allows SNACS to modify its education to students and adapt the teaching curriculum to suit a child’s individual needs. This academic culture has been a proven success at SNACS, and the implementation of the "Choice" program throughout Nevada would prove beneficial to the educational standards state-wide.

Sierra Nevada Academy Charter School’s motto is “Bringing Small Community Back to the Neighborhood”. The evidence of this aphorism becomes clear the moment you walk into the main office. The faculty knew each student by name and easily communicated with all students. According to Dr. Regan, “we have students that bring their families, and even their cousins visiting from out of town to visit the school”. This idea seems to be deeply ingrained in not only the staff, but in the students and their families. The school asks that parents volunteer for ten hours each month. To make this volunteering more beneficial to both the volunteer and the school, they assign volunteer duties based on the parents’ skill set. Dr. Regan explained, “We have parents who are plumbers, landscapers, and DJ’s, and when we need someone’s help and expertise in a particular field, we know who to call”. The feeling of community at SNACS greatly exceeds volunteering. Each year students, staff, and their families will participate in camp-outs in locations like Yosemite, Point Reyes, and Tahoe. These camp-outs not only bring the Sierra Nevada Academy Charter School community closer together, but provide memories and experiences that these students may not otherwise get the opportunity to have. Events like these, combined with student and family integration that occurs on a daily basis, have created a formula that allowed SNACS to be an oasis in an area surrounded by schools often characterized as underperforming.

Sierra Nevada Academy Charter School is a standout for what education can be, and what education should be in the state of Nevada. The school currently operates as a K-8 with an attached preschool, but this will not be the case for long. In the next few years, SNACS intends to add 9th-12th grade, and eventually transition out of their current location to a bigger location that can accommodate more students with additional space for operations. Sierra Nevada Charter School is run by a fantastic administration, qualified teachers and an involved community that has, and will continue to have, families returning for generations to come.   

Michael Lienhard  

Michael Lienhard is Assistant Director of Charter School Association of Nevada. Michael is from Roseville, California where he attended public school for his K-12 education. Education has been something Michael has always valued, and has been prevalent in his family with both his mother and sister being elementary school teachers. In the past Michael has interned for United States Senator Dean Heller, and advocated for school choice while working for Americans for Prosperity. Michael is graduating from the University of Nevada, Reno this spring, and plans to continue to advocate for education policy in Nevada, and across the country. 

• School Choice, Charter Schools and Constitutionality
• Sources of Charter School Law
• Legislative and Case Law Updates
• Complying with Federal Laws
• Special Education and Charter Schools
• Discipline of Special Needs Students
• Avoiding Exclusionary Practices
• Navigating the Application, Approval and Renewal Process
• Accountability Standards
• Funding Sources