SCHOOLS
Nicole grew up going to Nevada public schools and that education set her up for success. With the help of a Guinn Millennium Scholarship, she was able to become the first person in her immediate family to go to college. Nicole never forgot where she came from and the opportunities our public schools gave her. She wants to make sure that kids in our schools today have that same opportunity at success, and that’s why she’ll always fight for funding and resources for our students and schools.
Nicole hasn’t just fought for our schools, she has a record of delivering for them. During her time as State Senate Majority Leader, Nicole made historic investments in K-12 education and passed the largest education budget in state history. As part of this effort, Nicole made sure our marijuana tax dollars were going towards funding for public education, just as voters intended. Nicole also wants to ensure Clark County is getting its fair share of our state’s school dollars. That’s why she worked to pass legislation updating Nevada’s 52-year old funding formula in order to more equitably fund schools across the state.
With that increase to school funding, Nicole was able to ensure that Nevada teachers received a much deserved pay raise and increased their reimbursement rates for school supplies because she understands that we need to keep good teachers in our classrooms so that our students have the best and brightest preparing them for the future. She also increased the statewide average per pupil spending by nearly $1,000 a student. Nicole knows that in order for our students to be successful, they need more individualized attention in the classroom. That’s why she directed $327 million towards reducing class sizes.
Nicole is a prosecutor who keeps our communities safe in her day job. She wants to make sure that our students are safe in school. That’s why she passed the first school safety budget in state history. She also increased funding for certification of school nurses and school psychologists and required all Nevada schools to provide mental health training and suicide prevention and intervention for students and school personnel.
Nicole was able to go to college because of the Guinn Millennium Scholarship program, and she wants to make sure kids today have the same ability to go to college. That’s why she passed legislation to increase the number of Millennium Scholarship recipients. She also helped full-time higher education students stay in school by expanding the number of eligible recipients for the Silver State Opportunity Grant program and expanded eligibility for the Nevada Promise Scholarship.
Nicole understands we have a lot more work to do improving our local schools and making college more affordable and accessible, but she knows investing in our schools provides opportunities for success for future generations of Nevadans. That’s why she will always go to bat for our students, our teachers, and our schools.