Good morning, and welcome to the Indy Education newsletter. I’m Rocio Hernandez, The Nevada Independent’s K-12 education reporter.
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News briefs
🏛️Reno, Incline High School teams take home awards from national civics competition — Students from Reno High School and Incline High School received recognition for their performance in this year’s We the People national competition, which took place earlier this month in Virginia.
“While this is not the first time Reno High has made the top 10, it is the first time we did for an ‘in-person’ event, not on Zoom, and that was special,” Richard Clark, a social studies teacher from Reno High School who coaches the school’s team, said in a statement.
This is the ninth time since 2014 that the Washoe County School District has sent two teams to the competition, which sees students testify as expert witnesses in simulated congressional hearings before panels of judges to present and debate their positions on questions surrounding the U.S. Constitution.
“During this time of disinformation and hyperpolarization, it is imperative that we train our young citizens to have factual, reasoned, civic discourse,” Milt Hyams, a government teacher from Incline High School who coaches the school’s team, said in a statement. “Now more than ever we need students and citizens that are willing to engage in these difficult conversations in a constructive way.”
📝 Superintendent’s Teacher Advisory Cabinet accepting applications — The Nevada Department of Education is accepting applications for its Superintendent’s Teacher Advisory Cabinet, which is comprised of educators across the state and meets quarterly with department leadership to inform and advise them on state policies, initiatives and priorities related to K-12 education. The application is open through June 7.
School Spotlight
Gardening teaches Clark County students lessons on nutrition, conservation and STEM
Clark County students showed off their green thumbs — and their arts and craft skills — at the annual Giant Student Farmers Market last Friday at the Downtown Summerlin shopping center in Las Vegas.
The market was made possible with support from Green Our Planet, a nonprofit organization that began in Las Vegas in 2013 by two documentary filmmakers and has since expanded nationally. It provides grants, equipment and training for schools looking to start gardens or hydroponic laboratories — soil-free growing systems that can be set up indoors — on their campuses.
The organization’s co-founder and co-CEO Ciara Byrne said these activities teach students about conservation, nutrition, entrepreneurship and even science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). Green Our Planet’s programming has expanded to about 1,000 schools in 44 states, and Byrne said the nonprofit is looking to expand into 10,000 by 2033.
“We mostly work with Title I schools, not just here in Nevada, but across the country, because we want to give kids in lower-income communities more access to opportunities like this,” she said.
Victoria Fertitta Middle School eighth grader Angel…
Read More: Indy Education: Schools show off fruits of their labor at Vegas student farmers