Las Vegas Weekend Recap - Unlocking Potential: Equity, Advocacy, and Opportunity

Nevada Southern University | Las Vegas, NV | March 14-15, 2025 

NBLME Las Vegas took center stage in critical discussions and celebrations of progress within the local education system. Over two impactful days, we engaged with key stakeholders, experts, alumni, and educators to explore solutions for the challenges facing schools in Las Vegas, as well as to reflect on NFBLME’s transformative journey over the past five years.

Day 1 - March 14th - How to Better the Las Vegas School System

Leadership Las Vegas’ Education Day

NFBLME Las Vegas had the privilege of moderating a panel to discuss ways to engage and impact education in the Las Vegas community. With around 289,000 students in the Nevada school system, every student must have the best possible education. The panelists (pictured below) discussed ways to make that a reality, including addressing systematic barriers to student success. The disparity in academic outcomes, for instance, often deepens a divide wherein students’ needs are not being met at their individual levels. The impact is felt most for students of color because gaps in literacy, poverty, and cultural differences isolate students, leaving them misunderstood in the classroom. The message? The change our students need and deserve starts with educators, with one panelist saying, "student outcomes don't change until adult practices do."  

From left to right: Sam Scavella, Maria Marinch-Gibbons, Clarence Dortch, Adam Johnson, Keith Brooks, Stavan Corbett

Nathan Trenholm on the Nevada Education system since COVID

To provide an overview of the Nevada education system, Nathan Trenholm (pictured below) discussed important statistics in the Nevada education system since 2019, then providing potential solutions to the concerns within the data gathered. Prior to 2019, Trenholm named that Nevada made a significant investment in literacy and AP access. That investment paid off big time, increasing reading scores on the NAEP assessment and graduation rates by 23%. Since 2019, however, he shared that Las Vegas has ranked as one of the worst states regarding teacher vacancies and academic achievement. Trenholm proposed that in order for kids to be engaged in their learning, parents also need to be informed and engaged; this means keeping parents thoroughly up to date on their children's progress, saying, "your voice is more important than it ever has been."

Pictured above: Nathan Trenholm 

Jhone Ebert on creating a destination school district

The new Clark County School District (CCSD) Superintendent, Jhone Ebert (pictured below), discussed her plans to make CCSD a "destination school district." Ebert highlighted that kids perform better when they have a teacher who looks like them, explicitly pointing out that Black kids are 40% more likely to go to college when they have a Black teacher. Ebert also shared that a 10-million-dollar grant is going towards bettering students' well-being overall, including mental health support! To achieve the dream of becoming a destination school district, Ebert introduced the "Portrait of a Nevada Learner." With this model, she plans to improve students' ability to communicate, build resilience, engage in collaboration, foster curiosity, and better problem-solving skills in order to give students what she prioritized as "durable skills, enabling them to build a life, a home, and a future for themselves, their families, and their communities." 

Pictured above: New CCSD superintendent Jhone Ebert.

Day 2—Five Years Strong—And Just Getting Started

NFBLME Las Vegas – State of the Fellowship

Over the past five years, NFBLME has grown from a vision into a movement. We started with just seven Fellows in Las Vegas, impacting 3,800 students and families. Now, in year four, we've expanded to 25 Fellows, reaching over 70,000 students and families and mentoring 200 adults along the way. More importantly, our Fellows are advancing - half of our alumni are either on track for or have already been promoted to a leadership role. And nearly all—95%— have persisted in the field of education, giving greater consistency and compounding impact.  

This work isn't just about one city—it's about a national shift in leadership representation. Next year, instead of launching a new cohort in Las Vegas, we're doubling down on ensuring that 100% of our alumni meet their performance goals by investing in development, mentorship, and the programming that will push this movement forward. 

What won't change? Our core values: Honesty, Authenticity, Brotherhood, Disruption, Equity. NFBLME has been a catalyst for change in Las Vegas, and together, we're building something bigger than any one program. 

This isn't about NFBLME—it's about the impact our Fellows make every day. Whether you're a fellow, a mentor, a supporter, or an advocate, your role in this mission matters. Let's keep growing, leading, and changing the face of education—together. 

*A Note of Gratitude for Junior Achievement

NFBLME would like to thank Junior Achievement for hosting our Fellows and making this event possible. Our Las Vegas Fellows got a chance to tour Junior Achievement’s facility and learn about the important work they do. Junior Achievement “works to help young people discover what's possible in their lives.” They do this by helping them connect what they learn in school with life outside the classroom. They let them know it's possible to “invest in their future, to gain a better understanding of how the world works, and to pursue their dreams.”