Somerset Academy of Carson City is a tuition-free K-8 public charter school that has received state approval to open as soon as August 2026. However, identifying the right space to open the new school is proving to be the biggest hurdle.
Somerset would become the first of its kind in the capital city under the state charter authority, meaning it answers to a separate entity from the Carson City School Board.
Board member Tyson League said the board has been working through its pre-opening conditions, but finding a physical location has slowed key decisions, including the timeline to hire a school leader.
“We deferred that to February, and we’re in the process of reviewing different options for locations,” League said. “It’s difficult finding locations in Carson, that’s the hard part. What is available isn’t necessarily in locations where a school would be feasible, so it’s been somewhat of a struggle.”
League said that once the school is built out to full size, Somerset would be looking to educate roughly 500 students. For the first year, he said the school would start with grades K-2 and add one grade each year as students move up.
“There’s been discussion about starting in one location that’s smaller, then transitioning to another location as we grow,” League said, “but the difficulty is in the fact that we’d likely need to remodel every place we go — so it wouldn’t be cost effective to invest in one space only to use it for a couple years.”
The facilities challenge, League said, is less about finding any building and more about finding one that fits what elementary-aged students need. Buildings currently on the market are typically former office buildings, medical buildings, or industrial areas with warehouses, which would require extensive remodeling to become a school with adequate common spaces and outdoor recreation.
“It’s important for younger students to have grass and play areas for outdoor recreation,” League said. “We’re not going to have them out there playing in a parking lot.”
League said the board’s first choice is building from scratch on raw land, and that they have financing for a new build. But he said suitable land in Carson City is limited, and zoning has been one of the most significant barriers.
“Is there land available in the industrial areas? Yes, but the zoning is inappropriate [for a school],” League said. “We’ve consulted land use attorneys [about requesting zoning changes on various properties] and they’ve told us, ‘You can ask the city, but your likelihood of success is minimal.’”
Despite the lack of a building, League said community interest has remained high, with more than 200 families submitting expressions of interest. For the board, he said the facilities issue is the next domino that has to fall, because it affects nearly every other step in the process.
“We’re exploring, we want to get it done as soon as we can,” League said. “But because we don’t have our location yet, I don’t know what the timeline looks like — that’s the next domino that has to fall.”
A new vision for education
Somerset is part of a larger network of state-sponsored charter schools supported by Academica, a for-profit educational management organization that provides services including financing and facility search support.
While some state lawmakers have scrutinized the use of taxpayer funds for EMO management fees, proponents point to the network’s academic performance, noting that Somerset middle schools in Nevada currently hold 5-star ratings. Supporters have also argued that EMO management fees cover services school districts typically provide internally, such as human resources, IT and accounting, but through centralized operations.
Not every charter school is managed the same, however; while some of Reno’s charter schools have flourished, others have experienced budgetary issues, mismanagement, or low scores. League said what it comes down to is board oversight and the choice of school leader.
Somerset’s board is made up of five members, including League, two local Carson City residents, and two Academica representatives — a school principal from Florida acting as an advisory board member, and a principal at Somerset Academy of Las Vegas.
League said his interest in bringing Somerset to Carson City is personal as well as practical. His child is still preschool aged, and he said families in Carson often look at what is available in Reno but find the commute unrealistic for most households.
“I think there needs to be a choice and another option for families,” League said. “I mean, you look at Doral and the extracurriculars they offer are just amazing; to bring an opportunity like that to Carson is something that everybody involved in this project really wants to do.”
League said charter schools allow for flexibility in how they shape their programs, and that Somerset in particular has a large focus in early literacy and continuing education. He said the goal is not simply to replicate what exists elsewhere, but to build something that fits Carson City and can adjust as needs change.
“We’re not the school district. We’re not the government. We can adapt and change and modify our procedures without the bureaucracy,” League said. “It’s the difference between moving a speed boat and a cruise ship. We want to provide the same service, we want to get to the same destination — but one of us can dodge a lot more obstacles, and more quickly, to get there than the other one.”
School curriculum and extracurricular offerings can be tailored to the communities they serve. While a coastal school may offer an ocean scuba diving course, that would be less feasible to high desert students. State charter schools in Reno offer a larger selection of courses than typical district schools with extracurriculars like yoga, app design, debate, journalism, robotics, and in some schools, even flight and aeronautic courses for those interested in becoming pilots.
League said society is evolving, and students need to be exposed to a variety of career possibilities at much younger ages, rather than following the same academic journey until graduation then deciding afterwards what they want to do next.
“Expose them to people working in different careers early on, and let them decide what might be appealing to them — whether it’s trades, science, education, whatever it may be,” League said. “We need to figure out what engages them, because for every person, every child, it’s going to be different.”
League said all state charters have to follow the same testing guidelines and requirements for funding as any other public school system, but he believes smaller scale allows them to respond faster when something is not working.
However, League said the specifics of curriculum and implementation would ultimately fall to the school leader Somerset hires.
“You hire your school leader based on their core values and what their beliefs are in terms of what they want to see at your school,” League said. “Then there’s a collaborative effort between the board and that school leader, because that school leader is ultimately the person that’s responsible for it. So you have to have full buy-in.”
League said the board is looking for a leader with experience building a strong community environment, and that they have seen that model at other charter schools they have visited.
“You see the principal walking the hallways, and every student knows who they are, says hi to them, knows something about them,” League said. “It’s like living in a small town.”
For now, League said the board is continuing to assess potential sites and is holding off on hiring until there is more certainty about where the school will operate.
“I want the community to know we are actively doing everything we can to bring this to Carson City,” League said. “If you’re interested in this school, and you’re interested in being involved, let us know, because when we do start enrollment, we want to be able to reach out and make everyone aware of that opportunity.”
He added that if anyone is aware of a location that could be a good fit, they should contact the board.
To learn more about Somerset Academy, you can visit their website here.
