Lombardo Tosses a Rope Around Nevada Schools, Hopes to Drag 'Em Out of the Mud

In the bright, painted halls of Pinecrest Academy down in Henderson, where the floors shine slicker than a politician’s promise, Governor Joe Lombardo declared he’s goin’ to fix Nevada’s schools–this time for real.

He called it the Nevada Accountability in Education Act, a name so dressed-up it needs a bonnet and parasol. According to the Governor, the new law will see to it that if a school district don’t do its job, it’ll be shaken up, rattled loose, and maybe even handed over to the government itself–which, in these parts, is about as comforting as handing a chicken coop to a fox with a necktie.

“After delivering the largest investment in K–12 education in Nevada’s history,” the Governor said, puffing out his chest like a prize turkey, “we owe it to our communities to match that investment with real results–and real accountability.”

He spoke about not letting a child’s fate get chained to the family’s income or the sorry corner of a city they were born in–a noble notion, sure as sunrise.

He mentioned opportunity scholarships, too–a golden ticket for a few lucky children to leap over the fence and escape the government-run paddock.

“All the students in the front here are currently utilizing opportunity scholarships,” Lombardo said as the chosen few beamed like prize pumpkins at a fair.

The Governor talked about open enrollment, charter school funding, school choice, and sprinkling a few prizes on excellent teachers–if they’re still around after the politics, paperwork, and pestering.

Now, you might think, hearing all this, that the sun is about to break over Nevada’s educational horizon. You might even think, dear reader, that salvation is nigh, but you’d be wrong.

Because while the Governor is busy making speeches and cutting ribbons, the unions still sit fat and sassy at the table, and the Democratic bosses still clutch the purse strings with fists tighter than a miser’s on Christmas Eve. As long as those two remain, Nevada schools will stay right where they’ve been for years–at the bottom of every list that matters and the top of every list that shames us.

The Governor means well, no doubt. But fixing Nevada education without breaking the back of the union stronghold is like trying to patch the Hoover Dam with chewing gum.

And as sure as the sun rises in the east and sets behind the Sierra, not a blessed thing will change.