Elko charter principal reports strong test-projections and eight-year charter renewal

Ashley Perkins, principal of the ELCO Institute for Academic Achievement, updated the Elko County Commission on the charter school's first year in its new facility and on academic performance metrics. Perkins said the school's end-of-year SBAC results placed the elementary school at four stars and the middle school at five stars; midyear projections indicated potential improvement to five-star for both levels.

“ We came out as a 4 star elementary and a 5 star middle school,” Perkins said, and she noted the charter authority recently granted the school an eight-year renewal in November. Perkins told commissioners the charter contract carries academic, organizational and financial frameworks and that even with an eight-year term the school would have two years to remedy any future failures in those frameworks before losing the charter.

Perkins said the school operates at or near its charter cap of 396 students (the charter allows +/-10%) and reported a large waiting list the board characterized in the hundreds. She discussed funding nuances compared with district schools (transportation funds recently available; some building and other pots not available to charters) and described how the school uses third-party data analysis (RTV Data) to track proficiency and growth.

Commissioners praised the school's academic turnaround since 2018 and asked about future expansion and resource needs, including buses purchased with a recent transportation award (two buses, roughly $180,000), staffing and the feasibility of adding high school grades; Perkins said the school is exploring options but emphasized the administrative and programmatic differences required for a high school.

The commission did not take formal action but thanked Perkins for the briefing.