NRS 388G.450 Authorization to establish pilot program to designate innovation school; requirements for designation; development of innovation; submission of plan to certain entities; heightened measures of accountability; revocation of designation; innovation zone; limitation on size of program; regulations. [Effective July 1, 2026.]

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A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.

1. Beginning July 1, 2026, the board of trustees of a school district may establish a pilot program to designate a public school within the school district as an innovation school. The State Public Charter School Authority may designate a charter school sponsored by the Authority as an innovation school. The purpose of an innovation school is to implement innovative educational practices designed to improve pupil achievement, increase educational equity and address specific challenges within the public school or community it serves.

2. A public school may be designated as an innovation school only if:

(a)At least 25 percent of the staff assigned to the public school express interest in the designation;

(b)More than 50 percent of the staff assigned to the public school vote in favor of the designation; and

(c)Any collective bargaining rights and agreements remain in effect after the designation.

3. To be designated as an innovation school, a public school must develop an innovation plan that:

(a)Identifies specific challenges or barriers to pupil achievement and proposes evidence-based strategies to address those challenges or barriers;

(b)Outlines measurable goals and performance benchmarks;

(c)Details the autonomies requested, including, without limitation, autonomy in any or all of the following:

(1)Curriculum;

(2)Budgeting;

(3)Staffing;

(4)Scheduling; or

(5)Professional development; and

(d)Describes methods for engaging stakeholders, including, without limitation, teachers, parents and community members in the development and implementation of the innovation plan.

4. A public school that has developed an innovation plan pursuant to subsection 3 shall submit the innovation plan to the board of trustees of the school district or the State Public Charter School Authority, as applicable. The board of trustees or State Public Charter School Authority shall review the plan and, if the plan is satisfactory, designate the public school as an innovation school.

5. The board of trustees or State Public Charter School Authority, as applicable, shall subject an innovation school to heightened measures of accountability to ensure that the proposed innovations lead to measurable improvements in pupil outcomes. An innovation school shall provide to the entity that designated the innovation school an annual progress report that includes, without limitation:

(a)Performance of pupils on standardized assessments and other academic benchmarks;

(b)Progress toward goals specified in the innovation plan; and

(c)Stakeholder engagement and satisfaction metrics.

6. The Department may revoke the designation of an innovation school if the innovation school fails to meet the performance benchmarks outlined in its innovation plan or does not comply with applicable laws and regulations.

7. A group of innovation schools serving geographically proximate or thematically aligned populations of pupils may be designated as an innovation zone by the board of trustees of a school district or the State Public Charter School Authority, as applicable. The innovation schools within an innovation zone may collaborate on shared goals, resources and strategies while maintaining school-level autonomy as outlined in their respective innovation plans.

8. The board of trustees of a school district or the sponsor of a charter school, as applicable, shall ensure that an innovation school has access to adequate resources to implement effectively its innovation plan. A pilot innovation school may apply for grants or other funding opportunities provided by the State or the Federal Government to support innovative educational practices.

9. The pilot innovation school program established pursuant to this section may include:

(a)Not more than three pilot innovation schools in each county whose population is 100,000 or more.

(b)Not more than one pilot innovation school in each county whose population is less than 100,000.

10. The Department shall adopt regulations prescribing the method for reviewing and approving a pilot innovation school pursuant to subsection 3.

ORGANIZATION OF LARGE SCHOOL DISTRICTS

General Provisions