UNLV’s newest graduates crossed the stage this spring with degrees in hand and a wide range of stories behind them. UNLV awarded more than 3,700 degrees during its spring 2026 commencement at the Thomas & Mack Center on Saturday.

By 2031, every Clark County School District student will be graduating with skills and experiences to set them up for success in their careers.

The Clark County School District’s plunging enrollment is a trend with no end in sight. Projections show that school funding could drop by nearly a quarter-billion dollars by 2030 as fewer students enroll to fill district classrooms.

For decades, the Clark County School District was one of the fastest growing school systems in the nation, buoyed by a booming gaming and tourism industry and low housing costs. Just seven years ago, when enrollment peaked, the district boasted 335,333 students in its classrooms. Then came the decline.

The Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) and the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) keep breaking attendance records – by a lot. Eight new professional leagues have launched since 2020, including softball, volleyball, and lacrosse. The optimism around women’s pro sports is so high that accounting firm Deloitte predicts the global women’s sports industry will surpass $3 billion in revenues this year – an increase of 340% since 2022. By all accounts, it’s not a fluke or a fad. And that’s largely because of one key reason: venture capitalists are pouring money into the burgeoning business of women’s sports for the long haul. Notably, many of them are women investors with decades of experience and capital to spend.

The project is a joint effort among CCSD, the Clark County Education Association teachers union, UNLV, the Nevada Department of Education and the state’s Education Service Center, which supports public schools from within the governor’s office.

The Lynn Bennett Early Childhood Education Center on the UNLV campus is expanding. They're expected to be completed in the summer with a potential opening in the fall. More children also means more staff, giving more UNLV students an opportunity to work in a field they may want to pursue.

On the eve of the 2023 Service Employees International Union Local 99 strike, Los Angeles Times Columnist Robin Abcarian wrote “I don’t blame the union one bit” and condemned Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent Alberto M. Carvalho for “just one more slap in the face” after Carvalho “responded to the (strike) vote by comparing the union’s action to a circus.”

At UNLV, which in March formally launched its Institute of Cybersecurity, the two-year Youth Rebel Start Academy within the College of Education, allows high schoolers to earn college credit and gain real-world experience through paid apprenticeships in multiple fields, including IT and cybersecurity. The UNLV Cyber Clinic also offers cybersecurity services at no cost to businesses that may need them, giving participants the chance to develop their skills in a hands-on environment.

“CCSD is proud to join forces with the State of Nevada, CCEA, and UNLV to pilot new ways of increasing student achievement,” said Jhone Ebert, superintendent of the Clark County School District. “Nevada has one of the shortest instructional days in the nation, and by giving our students and staff more time to engage in the learning process we know we will see improved student proficiency.”

Las Vegas is set to host another Super Bowl at Allegiant Stadium, with the NFL naming the city the site of Super Bowl 63 in 2029 — a return that comes on a relatively short timeline by Super Bowl standards.

Despite the budget cuts, CCSD continues hiring special education teachers to fill approximately 140 current vacancies. Ebert said the district is working with UNLV to expand licensing programs for educators wanting to transition into special education.