Clark County School District
The Clark County School District, as of 2005, is the 5th largest school district in the U.S.. It serves all of Clark County, Nevada, including the city of Las Vegas. The district is divided into 5 Regions and, in addition to the general schools, it also operates 25 Alternative Schools and Programs. The district also has limited involvement with Charter schools but, with the exception of providing some bus service, does not have any involvement with the private schools in the county.

Link to Clark County School District: CCSD

Growth
Due to the large number of families moving into the Las Vegas area, the school district has seen tremendous growth in students since the 1990s. Several bond issues have been approved by the voters to help the district deal with this growth. This has resulted in many new schools being constructed. In some years, as many as 16 schools have opened.

This has also resulted in a very high demand for teachers to staff the classrooms. As a result, the district has had to be creative in finding teachers to hire. They have even posted employment posters in the airport hoping that some of the teachers who are visiting might decide to stay and teach.

Regions
East
Northeast
Northwest
Southeast
Southwest

Leadership
The school district is managed by a seven member board of trustees elected from sections of the county. The current superintendent of the district is Dr. Walt Rulffes who was appointed by the board in January of 2006. School board members serve staggered four year terms.

Transportation
Since the district operates in a valley that has had air quality concern, it currently operates most of the bus fleet with a fuel mixture containing 20% biodiesel. Being in a desert, there is not much material grown that can be used to create a biodiesel. So the district partnered with Biodiesel Industries to use the grease from area restaurants as the additive. With so many tourists, the area generates twice the national average of 3 gallons of grease per resident per year, making this a reliable feed source for biodiesel.

School buildings
To reduce construction costs, most schools are being built to standard designs. These designs are adapted to the various sites to deal with different topographies and site sizes. While most elementary schools are single story building, the district has built some demonstration schools using two story plans so that smaller sites could be used allowing schools to be located in built up areas that do not have space for a traditional single story design.

Elementary schools (K-5)
In order to deal with the rapid increase in students, some of the district elementary schools are on a 12 month schedule. At these schools, the student body is divided into 5 tracks. Four of the tracks are in school and the 5th is on a break. This allows the school to hold 33% more students without overcrowding. Tracks are assigned and some preference is given to familles with children in middle or high school to be assigned to the track that most closely matches those schedules. The schools operate on a trimester schedule with report cards issued three times a year.

The district also will add portable classrooms which are modular buildings at many schools to provide additional space for classes. These are not desirable solution since they usually reduce the outdoor play areas.

The district has contracted with Edison Schools to operate several schools in an effort to improvement performance at these selected schools.