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Elko County trustees approve 2025–26 school calendar after closed-session negotiations
Summary
The Elko County School District Board of Trustees voted to approve the 2025–26 school calendar after a closed-session discussion of a negotiated calendar; trustees heard public comment and a written recommendation from collective bargaining units before the vote.
The Elko County School District Board of Trustees voted Feb. 3 to approve the 2025–26 school calendar after discussing a negotiated proposal in closed session.
Board members moved into a closed session under NRS 288.22 for discussion related to the negotiated calendar and returned to open session to take final action. The board then approved "the calendar as given," with trustees answering by voice vote; the chair recorded the motion as passing.
The board received public comment both in-person and in writing before the closed session. One written submission, from Natasha Martin on behalf of the Elko County Teachers Association (ECTA), said the association and two other bargaining units voted overwhelmingly to support a calendar proposal that starts Aug. 18, ends the school year before the MineExpo and aligns spring break with Great Basin College. The letter cited NAC 387.131 (instructional minutes) and proposed using a 146-day instructional-year basis to preserve minutes while allowing padding for emergency closures.
A parent, identified in public comment as Kirsten (Kirsten) Holly of Jackpot Combined School, supported the proposed dates but urged staggered release times at combined schools to reduce congestion during pickup. County Commissioner Brian Gale urged a later start to help agricultural families, saying an August start "stifles some of our help."
Student board member Riley Byers said she favored the calendar’s structure, supporting finals before winter break and alignment of spring break with college partners because it helped students in dual-enrollment courses.
The board’s motion to move into closed session cited NRS 288.22; the subsequent motion to approve the calendar followed the closed-session discussion. The meeting record shows the approval passed by voice vote; no roll-call tally of individual yes/no votes was recorded in the transcript.
The board announced the next regular meeting will be March 18 in Owyhee.
Ending: The approved calendar will guide the district’s 2025–26 academic year; the district will notify families and post the final calendar on its website.
