PAK-HARVEY

the best of Clark County School District students: those who vaulted from the Clark County School District to the Ivy League.

The district and state are fixated on increasing graduation rates to bolster the abysmal reputation of Nevada’s public education system. By that measurement, if a student

graduates, it’s considered a success.

But what about from kids who were able to prepare themselves to attend the country’s top universities? How did they do it and what secrets can they share?

In the first installment of Chalk Talk, you’ll hear them discuss their experiences in the district, how those experiences — both good and bad — prepared them for a rigorous college curriculum and in what ways they wish their Clark County schooling

was better.

It’s my hope that these videos will give readers a better sense of the challenges and issues in education by hearing directly from the people who are in the trenches.

You may not sit through every Legislative public hearing, or see who supports which motion, or keep track of the backroom politics of the Clark County School Board.

That’s OK, because you can leave it up to me to do that.

But ideally, Chalk Talk will serve as a reminder — to myself and to others working in Nevada education circles — of what my job and theirs is really all about : Nevada’s children and the people who help them grow.

Contact Amelia Pak-harvey at apak-harvey@reviewjournal. com or 702-383-4630. Follow @ Ameliapakharvey on Twitter. On Education appears every other Saturday.