Nye County schools place 33 students in local work-based jobs

The Nye County School District has already placed 33 students in paid local work-based jobs, with Spring Mountain Motor Resort and Country Club signing on for 10 and Valley Electric Association taking four, a sign that the district’s new program is moving beyond classroom theory and into actual local labor demand.

Built with support championed by Nevada Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, the program is designed to match high school students with businesses tied to their interests, whether they plan to go to a four-year college, a trade school or straight into the workforce after graduation. Tom Sawyer, the district’s Work-Based Learning Grant Site Representative, said the effort is meant to connect students with real opportunities in the community and is built to serve a wide range of students, not just those already headed toward one career track.

The program’s structure is meant to add accountability as well as access. Students are paid $13 an hour, the grant covers workers’ compensation, and participating businesses undergo FBI background checks before students are placed. Students also have to meet attendance and GPA requirements before they can be sent out, a filter that keeps the program focused on readiness as well as opportunity.

These are not simple job-shadowing slots. Students are applying, interviewing, filling out paperwork, learning schedules, receiving evaluations and adjusting to the expectations of an actual workplace. That matters in Nye County, where families and employers alike have an interest in keeping young people connected to local jobs that can lead to certifications, paid employment or a post-graduation path into the regional workforce.

The Nevada Department of Education says work-based learning is meant to connect classroom instruction with real-world experience that helps students explore careers, build skills and prepare for postsecondary education and employment. Under the state’s framework, paid work experiences are part of the career-training options for students in grades 11 and 12, and districts must maintain a formal program and evaluate host worksites to make sure the learning environment is safe and appropriate.

For Pahrump-area students, the early numbers suggest the district is trying to build something more durable than a short-term placement list. With 33 students already assigned and more expected, the program is beginning to form a local pipeline between the classroom, Nye County employers and the next step after high school.