Education

AB 397 revises Nevada's higher education fee waiver program to provide clearer support for homeless students. It requires the Board of Regents to automatically grant fee waivers (covering registration, lab, and mandatory fees) to students under 25 who: experienced homelessness for at least six months between ages 12-25; received services from Nevada-based homeless support agencies during that time; and completed the federal student aid application annually. The bill replaces the previous "may grant" language with a mandatory "shall grant" requirement and adds documentation verification steps. It also repeals a separate requirement for analyzing natural materials requested by Nevada residents. This directly affects eligible homeless students enrolled in undergraduate programs across Nevada's public universities.

AB 416 prohibits school boards, charter school governing bodies, and school employees from restricting student access to library materials by removing, hiding, labeling, or defacing them. It allows materials to be removed only through a court order if deemed obscene under a standard similar to existing law. The bill also creates new felony charges for using force to block student access or leaking personal information of school staff or students as retaliation for accessing library materials, with specific conditions for the information-sharing provision. This directly affects school officials, students, and staff by protecting access to library resources and penalizing interference.

AB 472 prohibits Nevada school districts from contracting with J-1 visa program sponsors or recruiters charging over $10,000 per participant for teacher exchange programs. It directly affects school districts hiring foreign teachers through these programs and the organizations recruiting them. The law exempts existing contracts signed before July 1, 2025, but requires new agreements or renewals after that date to comply with the fee limit. This is a concrete policy change limiting costs for school districts using J-1 visa teacher programs.

AB 345 requires the Nevada System of Higher Education to create a public data dashboard tracking student outcomes by September 2026. The dashboard will show enrollment patterns (e.g., high school graduates entering college), remedial course usage, average graduation timelines, and post-graduation employment or assistance receipt - without personal data. It also mandates a policy defining and labeling courses using low-cost or free educational materials, effective in 2026. Additionally, the bill directs an interim study on student financial and food insecurity, including causes of temporary withdrawal and potential solutions, with a report due by July 2026. These provisions directly affect Nevada’s public colleges and universities, their students, and school districts collaborating on data collection.

AB 335 requires school districts to appoint an administrator to support English learner students and mandates principals to consult this administrator when creating school improvement plans. The bill specifically directs schools with 10%+ English learners to prioritize closing achievement gaps between these students and proficient peers, setting quantitative goals for their progress. It also requires all teachers to complete English language acquisition training by 2030 and mandates that student data for newcomers be disaggregated without negatively affecting school or staff performance ratings. The bill repeals an outdated requirement for corrective action plans in schools with low English learner achievement. These changes directly affect school districts, principals, teachers, and English learner students across Nevada.