Natha Anderson teaches English at North Valleys High School in Golden Valley. She’s also running for a second term as representative for Assembly District 30, which covers much of Sparks. She says educators bring an integral perspective to the Legislature.
“There’s so much more than what is in the classroom that goes into education. And so having an individual who is aware of the planning, who’s aware of the pedagogy, who’s aware of the requirements of what we are being asked to do is incredibly important,” Anderson said.
Anderson is one of four public school teachers running for the Assembly. Selena La Rue Hatch also teaches at North Valleys High, and she’s running for the open seat in District 25. In Southern Nevada, Brittney Miller and Selena Torres work for the Clark County School District and are running for reelection.
Angie Taylor, on the other hand, is president of the Washoe County School District Board of Trustees and running for District 27. Not a teacher by trade, Taylor shares similar views and priorities.
“We need more support for education as a whole. To me, what that looks like in the more immediacy is reduce class sizes and increase educator pay. Those two things in it of themselves will change the trajectory of our K-12 system, I believe,” Taylor shared.
The assembly candidates, who are all Democrats, agree with Taylor that raising Nevada’s per-pupil funding is a priority for the upcoming 2023 session.
Republican District 26 Assemblymember and Truckee Meadows Community College political science professor Lisa Krasner is now running for state senate District 16. She wants to enact school choice reforms, like expanding charter schools and providing scholarships for students to attend private schools.
Jose Davila IV is a corps member for Report for America, an initiative of the GroundTruth Project.