• Carson Now on Facebook
  • Follow Carson Now on Twitter
  • Follow Carson Now by RSS
  • Follow Carson Now by Email

Carson City School Board Trustees hear update on Carson High, Pioneer Academy merger

Carson City School Trustees heard an update regarding the proposed absorption of Pioneer Academy under Carson High School.

On Tuesday, Superintendent Andrew Feuling said a community meeting was held for Pioneer Academy parents and staff, which he said went well, though stakeholders were concerned over the merger.

The merger would effectively turn Pioneer Academy into an off-site alternative campus of Carson High School, but the intention is not to change anything as to how the school is run. There is a vacancy for a principal at Pioneer Academy, and merging the schools would be a cost saving measure for the district as a second principal would no longer be necessary.

Pioneer High School was established in 1999, and became Pioneer Academy in 2021 when it offered an elementary and middle school online program during the pandemic.

Feuling said that one of the reasons they are looking to combine the schools is for long term cost saving measures due to the fact that a low enrollment trend is expected to continue.

During the 2002-03 school year, enrollment was 8,558 district wide. For the 2024-25 school year, enrollment is projected at 6,938, and is only expected to continue a downward slope due to lower birth rates, an increased housing market, and pandemic impacts.

Currently, the entire kindergarten enrollment district wide is 410 students. If this continues, by the 2034-35 school year, there would only be 1700 9-12 grade students, a decrease from the current 2,500 students enrolled in the district.

And with lower enrollment comes lower funding.

“We have to look for options in the long run to reduce structural costs,” Feuling said.

However he said, this brings a number of positive opportunities for Pioneer Academy students. The campus would continue to be an alternative option to the larger CHS main campus, offering smaller class sizes for students who thrive in an alternative atmosphere. All current Pioneer students would continue attending the campus, and there is no intention to change the name. The Vice Principal of the school would report to the CHS Principal, and CHS would become responsible for all students, staff and activities on the Pioneer campus.

One of the issues Pioneer struggles with is the fact that the Nevada Department of Education does not consider them an alternative campus but rather expects them to adhere to the same standards as a comprehensive high school when it comes to ratings, which is often impossible given Pioneer’s small class sizes.

For example, Associate Superintendent of Educational Services Tasha Fuson said, Pioneer has struggled to get a Career and Technical Education (CTE) program off the ground. In order to have a CTE program, which is necessary for NDE ratings, a minimum of 45 students would need to sign up for just one introductory CTE course. However, between freshman and sophomore students, Pioneer only has around 50 students total.

“It is extremely difficult to earn points as a small alternative school,” Feuling said.

Under the umbrella of CHS, Pioneer students would be able to take CTE classes, and could potentially be bused to and from the CHS campus for classes such as culinary, or extracurriculars.

Trustees questioned if students would still have their own graduation, prom, and extracurriculars such as speech and debate, and Fuson said it would be left up to the schools and students.

“We at the district office are not going to make that decision for them,” Fuson said. “It’s, ‘what do the students want? Is it important to them to have a separate celebration at Pioneer Academy?’ We’ll be considering the desires of the stakeholders of those programs.”

Many trustees said they would like to see the students themselves involved in the plans.

“The school has really come into its own, there’s a group of students that feel very at home and comfortable there,” Trustee Mike Walker said. 
“Including their involvement and say in how it progresses and the identity; if they feel accepted and safe, they’re going to do better in school and set them up for their future. We need to keep that intact as much as possible.”

Fueling said the district will continue working on the merger, and will stay in contact with parents and staff at Pioneer moving forward.

Top Stories

... or see all stories

Looking for a place to take your little ones this week? Look no further! Here is a list of family-friendly (and fun!) activities and events happening this week around Carson City.

The next Carson City School Board meeting will take place Tuesday, June 11 beginning at 6:30 p.m. in the Bob Crowell Board Room of the Community Center locate at 851 E. William St.

Trustees will discuss policy changes, test results, partnerships and more.

A 31-year-old man was arrested Friday for felony possession of explosive device components, two counts child neglect and two counts elder neglect among the alleged offenses, according to a Carson City Sheriff's Office booking report.

Sierra Nevada Realtors on Monday released its May 2024 report on existing home sales in Washoe, Storey, Lyon, Douglas, and Churchill counties, along with Carson City.

Tammy Westergard, with the Nevada Governor’s Office for Economic Development, will be the speaker at the next Rotary Club of Carson City meeting.

There is nothing more pleasing to mine ear than the music of children at play, and yet that gladdening music is scarce today, as mortgages and rents push potential parents away from our mountain redoubt. Why not let AI take over the humdrum jobs, and free folks to create art, make music, author books, make babies, because at bottom that’s what we all want to do.

What about peonies?” my friend Kristen asked me recently. She wanted to purchase some for her daughter’s new home. I love peonies, their look and fragrance. I tried to grow them years ago, but failed, probably because of their need for rich, fertile soil. They didn’t grow even with get six hours to eight hours of sun per day.

UPDATE 4:50PM: The fire at the landfill has been extinguished, according to Carson City Fire Department Battalion Chief Jon Pedrini.
The fire was around 100 foot by 40 foot and knocked down by firefighters and work crews at the scene. There were no threats to structures or wildland.

The Color of Neon, a Reno business specializing in developing artistic neon light displays, has come to Carson City community radio KNVC and created our logo in neon.

For more than 85 years, the Rotary Club of Carson City has made a difference in the community. Living by the motto of “Service over Self,” these philanthropic community volunteers have been helping others in a variety of ways, providing a meal for the homeless, tutoring children, maintaining parks, assisting the high school marching band and much more.

Carson City Fire Department and sheriff's deputies were called Sunday at around noon to a vehicle fire in the area of Dori Way and Lompa Lane.

Carson City Sheriff's Office Investigations have released a video of an attempted residential burglary that happened June 2. Detectives seek the identity of the suspects.

The Carson City Symphony's annual Pops Party concert is today, Sunday, June 9, 2024, 6 p.m. at the Governor's Mansion back lawn, 606 Mountain Street, Carson City. The grounds will be open to the public at 5 p.m. Admission is free.

Plumas Bank, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Plumas Bancorp, announces a new addition to its team; Kara Harris joined the Reno branch as Plumas Bank’s Vice President and Business Development Officer. In this role, Harris is responsible for spearheading strategy to enhance business growth, foster client relationships, and expand Plumas Bank’s market presence in northern Nevada and the Sierra region.

Beautiful color over Carson City from a late spring sunset taken Wednesday, June 5.

On Saturday, June 15, 2024, Capitol City Gun Club in Carson City, NV will host a Sporting Clays Sub-Gauge Shoot from 9:00am to 4:30pm. On Sunday, June 16th, the Club will host a Father’s Day Fun Shoot with discounted target fees all day. The Club features Trap, Skeet, 5-Stand and Sporting Clays. Everyone is invited to come!

On Sunday June 9, the Lyon County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue team will offer training to LRTC (Least Resistance Training Concepts) on basic Crime Scene Investigation (CSI) techniques. LRTC is north-western Nevada’s Technical Large Animal Rescue team.

Here is the Carson City area road report for the week of June 10-16, 2024. Closures are expected at the following locations due to road and utility work:

On Wednesday, June 5, 2024, the Third Judicial District Court of the State of Nevada ordered the June 2024 Primary Election for Fernley City Council Ward 5 and Stagecoach General Improvement District Trustees as void following a hearing on Friday afternoon to address errors on the Lyon County 2024 Primary Election ballots regarding the number of candidates to vote for in the two races.

UPDATE 2:50PM: A teen who crashed his mountain bike in Ash Canyon late Saturday morning was lifted out of the canyon by a Washoe County Sheriff's RAVEN helicopter and then transferred to a Care Flight air ambulance after being rescued by Carson City firefighters.

June events at Dayton State Park include a Butterfly Garden Activity and a birdwatching walk.

Hello fellow anglers. I wanted to thank all of the committee members, the volunteers and our great community that gave so much, to make the 31st annual Douglas County Kids Fishing Day a huge success last weekend.

Experience Carson City's only farmers market, open every Saturday — rain or shine — from June 8 to Sept. 28, 2024, at the Marv Teixeira Pavilion, Mills Park, Carson City.

A 67-year-old man was arrested Thursday for felony charges related to possession of child pornography, according to the Carson City Sheriff's Office.

In his paintings, Tom Gilbertson creates a visual imbalance between the central floral image and the industrial overlays. The Capital City Arts Initiative’s exhibition, "Recent Works", presents work by Gilbertson at the Courthouse Gallery. The exhibition began June 5 and runs through Sept. 26, 2024.

It’s time to get reading with the Carson City Library’s Summer Reading Challenge kicking off Saturday, June 8 from 12 to 4 p.m. at the Carson City Library, located at 900 N. Roop St. in Carson City.

The theme, “Travel Through Time,” encourages participants to embark on a literary adventure by logging reading hours and following along through different eras with a host of exciting events and activities scheduled. The challenge is open to all ages, from children to adults.

Have you ever wanted to learn the old art of blacksmithing? Early smiths made wagon parts, handmade tools, shaped ornamental pieces, horseshoes, hinges and just about anything to having to do with working metal into a desired shape or purpose.

The Carson City School District provided the following list of community activities for or in support of youth organizations throughout the summer.

Celebrate the Fourth of July at the Fourth Ward. Experience spectacular views of the official Virginia City fireworks show from our beautiful historic balcony and attic. This rare opportunity to sit on our balcony or look out our fourth-story windows will create memories for years to come. These areas are usually not open to the public.

For a smaller sized city, Carson City’s 18 playgrounds offers a lot of places to play for local children.

However, due to vandalism and damages, around 40 percent of these playgrounds are or were recently out of commission.