Community values education
Summerlin offers 26 public, private and charter schools
It has been said that schools are the heart of a community, and this is especially true for the master-planned community of Summerlin, according to Danielle Bisterfeldt, senior vice president of marketing and consumer experience.
With 26 schools including public, private and charter facilities, Summerlin offers more educational choices than any other Southern Nevada community, maintaining a focus on education that has been integral to the development of the community since its inception.
“The community’s history began with The Meadows, a premier college preparatory school built on land donated by The Howard Hughes Corp. and the very first structure to be built in Summerlin — a few years before the first residents moved in,” Bisterfeldt said. “Today, nearly 35 years later, The Meadows is still considered one of the valley’s top-ranked private schools.”
According to Bisterfeldt, the decision to donate land to The Meadows was intentional to help put the new community on the map, making it a destination for the hundreds of families whose children attended school there — well before Summerlin began to take shape. For the first public school in the community, the William R. Lummis Elementary School, named for a cousin of Howard Hughes and the executor of his estate, The Howard Hughes Corp. donated $250,000 to the Clark County School District to help underwrite the creation of a new school prototype that was used as a model for other schools throughout the district for many years.
“Planning for schools — both public and private — was foundational to the development of the master plan,” Bisterfeldt said. “From the community’s inception, land was specifically designated and sited for both public and private schools. We continue to work closely with the CCSD, as well as private school operators, to ensure that Summerlin continues to offer more educational choice than any other community in Southern Nevada.”
Today, Summerlin’s 26 schools include 10 acclaimed private schools, including Bishop Gorman High School, a Catholic college preparatory school; Faith Lutheran Senior and Junior High schools, as well
as Faith Lutheran Academy; Alexander Dawson School at Rainbow Mountain; St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic School; Merryhill School; Shenker Academy; and the Adelson Educational Campus, which is home to three Jewish schools: Milton I. Schwartz Hebrew Academy, Adelson Middle School and Adelson Upper School.
“We are proud of the fact that many of the valley’s leading private schools chose to locate in Summerlin when they could go anywhere in the valley,” Bisterfeldt said. “Their accomplishments in academics, sports and the arts help to fuel the community’s rich educational offerings.”
Ariana Gaminara, a 2022 graduate of Faith Lutheran High School, recently helped to establish the school’s first women’s wrestling team.
“The support I received from the FLHS athletic department spoke volumes about the school’s interest in advancing women’s sports,” Gaminara said. “Wrestling showed me how far I could push myself, physically and mentally. I am very proud of all the female athletes who worked hard in our first year of competition, and I appreciate the progressive thinking of school administrators in helping us to make our dream come true.”
Summerlin is also home to nine public elementary schools, three public middle schools and two public high schools: Palo Verde
High School and West Career and Technical Academy. Both schools recently landed on U.S. News & World Report’s annual list of best high schools in the country. West Career & Technical Academy is the second highest-rated high school in the valley, coming in at No. 402 amongst 18,000 schools nationwide; and Palo Verde High School is the 15th highest-rated high school in the valley, ranking No. 3,632 nationally. Both high schools offer International Baccalaureate programs that provide advanced courses in a variety of subjects, helping graduates secure admission to many of the country’s leading universities.
Two charter schools round out the community’s K-12 educational offerings: Discovery Charter School and Doral Academy Red Rock Campus.
Summerlin is also home to institutions of higher learning, including a satellite campus of the College of Southern Nevada on the campus of Palo Verde High School, a campus of University of Phoenix and Roseman University of Health Sciences, which will help to meet Nevada’s doctor shortage by training future physicians and medical professionals.
“When a community is proud of its schools, it’s a direct reflection of the quality of life that exists there,” Bisterfeldt said. “Summerlin is no exception. We’re committed to children and their futures, and we, along with our residents, are bursting with pride for every school in our community. And it’s why we continue to set aside land for future schools to meet the demand as the community grows.”
Now in its 32nd year of development, Summerlin delivers more amenities than any other community in Southern Nevada. This includes more than 300 parks of all sizes; resident-exclusive community centers, pools and events; 200-plus miles of interconnected trails; 10 golf courses; 26 public, private and charter schools; a public library and performing arts center; Summerlin Hospital Medical Center; houses of worship representing a dozen different faiths; office parks; and neighborhood shopping centers. Downtown Summerlin offers fashion, dining, entertainment, Red Rock Resort and office towers. City National Arena is home of the NHL’S Golden Knights practice facility, and Las Vegas Ballpark, a world-class Triple-a baseball stadium, is home of the Aviators, the top farm club of the Oakland Athletics.
In total, Summerlin offers nearly 120 floor plans in 20-plus neighborhoods throughout nine distinct villages and districts. Homes, built by many of the nation’s top homebuilders, are available in a variety of styles — from single-family homes to townhomes, priced from the $400,000s to more than $1 million. For information on all actively selling neighborhoods, visit Summerlin. com. Before you visit, call the builders to check on hours of operation. Phone numbers for each neighborhood are on Summerlin.com.