By GWENDOLYN WEILER
Moapa Valley Progress
Lisa Wolfley, the president of the Moapa Valley chapter of Power2Parent (P2P), stands at the podium and welcomes a large crowd of parents and educators gathered at the Old Logandale School for the P2P Nevada School Choice Parent Event held Thursday, July 26.
The event was divided into two segments. The first hour was dedicated to addresses by various educators and representatives. The second hour was open for parents to walk around the room and gather information about various education options including public schooling, homeschooling, charter schools, online public schooling, and more.
Wolfley said that the local chapter was intentional about creating a neutral environment strictly for the purpose of informing parents about all their options when it comes to teaching their children.
“It’s been hard for people to get information,” Wolfley said. “They don’t know who to talk to or where to go. So we thought it would be great to just pull as many resources as we could together to give parents somewhere to go to check it all out.”
The local public schools were an important presence at the event. Each school principal was in attendance to answer questions and discuss the benefits of a public education.
CCSD Associate Superintendent Grant Hanevold was unable to attend the event. But he issued a written statement in which he supported local parents in their search for the best fit for their children.
“Although I firmly believe that public education is the best option for most students, I do understand that families have unique needs and certainly deserve the right to explore options that may work best for their child,” Hanevold said in his statement, which was read by Shawna Jessen, principal of Grant M. Bowler Elementary.
All of the speakers echoed similar sentiments.
Maile Montierth attended the event as both a parent and an advocate for the homeschool curriculum “The Good and the Beautiful.” Four of her five children are currently in school, but she does a mix of both homeschooling and public schooling between them. Her oldest is going into eighth grade this fall at W. Mack Lyon Middle School. Her sixth-grader will do a mix of public schooling and homeschooling.
Her two youngest school-aged children are being completely homeschooled.
“I don’t feel like public school is a bad choice, but I felt like I found some holes with some of my younger kids,” Montierth said. “I needed to be the one to fill those and to fill in the values that I think are more important for my family.”
Other home-school organizations in attendance included Latter Day Learning, Nevada Homeschool Network, RISE Education Resource Center and George Washington Academy.
KaeLyne Pendelton, director of the new local private school, Go EXL Academy, which is currently meeting in the Old Logandale School building, said, “We are not trying to take away from CCSD or public schools. We want to be an option because we feel there are a lot of people who need options, especially in a rural community. They need to know there is another place for them to go.”
Other private schools represented at the event included Far West Academy and Mesquite Christian Academy.
The charter school option was also represented by online charters Nevada Connections Academy and Nevada State High School.
Ken Paul, principal of W. Mack Lyon Middle School voiced his appreciation of the spirit of the event. “If the government and the decision-making is at that grassroots level, that’s what’s most effective,” Paul said.
Charlie Melvin, director of P2P public relations, said it makes sense for the organization to be part of the school choice movement. “It’s very, very important that we get to educate our children in the way that we think best in our four walls, and that you maintain the rights to do the same thing,” Melvin said.
For more information on school options, parents can go to Power2Parent.org or contact the following directly:
Brian Scroggins; Deputy Director, Nevada State Public Charter School Authority 775-687-9174.
KaeLyne Pendelton: Director, Go EXL Academy 702-610-0455
Valeria Gurr; State Director, Nevada School Choice Coalition 1-877-996-8372.
