Top 10 Reasons to Attend SNACS
As a tuition-free charter school, Sierra Nevada Academy Charter School (SNACS) is open to K-8 students in the Reno, NV area. Our mission is to lead educational innovation through personalized learning via PLAY (more on this below), choice, and exploration within our small school community. Here are 10 reasons families are happy they chose our small, community school:
1. 25 Years of Excellence
Bringing the small school community back to the neighborhood.
In 1999, SNACS opened the first charter school serving K-8 in the state of Nevada. We are a one-of-a-kind school that helps learners of all backgrounds and abilities thrive. SNACS has been a staple in the Reno community for 25 years, with our alumni returning to give back (and even teach!).
Our Teachers love it here! Our experienced, committed faculty rarely turns over, leaving behind a lasting legacy of excellence and dedication. Not only do our teachers stick around, but our hard-working team of Board of Directors is fervently supportive as well. Even our alumni come back and visit often and love to give back to our community!
“It’s neat to be a part of something that’s growing and constantly changing.”
– Cinnamon, Former SNACS Parent (Preschool – 8th grade)
2. Choice and Personalized Learning
Using innovative technology, we can foster agency and decision-making through our innovative Interactive Choice Boards that have been carefully developed over many years with recognition from Harvard University.
Our small school community fosters personalized learning, technology, choice, parent and student engagement, and STEAM. SNACS students continue to stay engaged throughout the school day because of the small group instruction and the opportunities for choices. These choice opportunities empower our students and guarantee fluid personalization for each student, achieving their own vision.
3. We love to Play
Our hands-on learning approach teaches the whole child, nurturing interest and decision-making. SNACS’ innovative instruction using Choice and Play sets us apart from other charter schools. Using the PLAY model (Promoting Learning and Accountability in Youth/Young children), we take personalized expeditionary learning to a whole new level.
Play brings the fun of learning to education. But did you know learning through play promotes increased student engagement and achievement? Students who are engaged in learning through play increase their understanding of key concepts as they apply what they are learning in real-time with real-world problem-solving skills.
4. Tech in Education – in Action
For 25 years, we have provided a strong instructional design for our K-8 students. Using standards-based curriculum like the Pearson/Savvas Curriculum, expeditionary learning design principles along with STEAM (Science Technology Engineering, Art, Mathematics), and data-based instructional design, our school day oozes with forward thinking.
All students love the high-impact technology at SNACS including computer science and robotics. But we’re more than just our strong academics – we’ve created a model where the climate and culture successfully support all learners and their families.
Teachers design classrooms, like a discovery museum, and students make choices which learning centers they want to learn in by using the first-ever Interactive Choice Boards leveraging technology and 21st Learning Century skills.
5. Tight-Knit Community
“Our Principal could probably name one thing about each and every person or their family.”
– SNACS student
We are a close-knit school community that fosters parent and student engagement. At SNACS, we know that family support and participation are vital for your child’s success. We encourage open communication between our parents and teachers, and we want our parents to have a voice and a choice in their child’s education. Our family-school partnership is the framework for providing students with every opportunity to succeed. Our students become a part of our extended SNACS family. We have many families join our campus with their child as an infant and stay with us until their child leaves for high school. Join the SNACS community!
6. Wraparound Services
Busy families love our before and after school care options that provide wraparound care for our K-8 families. Our continuity of care starts with high-quality care for infants teaching them a love of learning. Children can attend the same small school community through 8th grade. One campus, one community makes us a favorite among the Reno community. If you’re a parent who is tired from traveling from one school to the next, we have you covered! Let us ease your stress by having all your children under one roof. Our convenient location in the North Valleys of Reno provides SNACS students a seamless transition during what some may find a daunting transformation in their lives.
7. Building up the Community
SNACS students are active contributing members of the Reno community. During our expeditionary learning enhancement days, SNACS students transform into leaders, fostering student agency and paying it forward to a community that has supported them. From creating kits that provide essentials for nonprofits and nearby shelters to volunteering in a meaningful way, our students make a difference and gain valuable experience that you can’t learn from your academic studies. Our community days build character, leadership, new skills, and collaboration. These actions are felt around the community, and our students demonstrate how even the smallest individuals can make a profound impact.
8. New Building
We would love to have you join us for a tour of our fresh, new building, filled with open classrooms inspiring creativity and choice. Every classroom in our new building was built with intention, promoting equity and excellence at the forefront. Our school colors, Battleborn Blue and Pencil Yellow, align with innovation, and the science of hope, and match the State of Nevada and the University of Nevada colors. Now, in our new building, our small school means freedom for collaboration and deeper personalized learning.
9. A Curriculum for a Smooth Transfer
“When you give the children a voice, you empower them to speak up for themselves, and that is so important.”
– Marcella H., SNACS Parent
Whether you’re new to homeschooling or a homeschool aficionado, we welcome you to make the seamless transition from at-home learning to our open classrooms. If you’re new to the area or are already familiar with Reno, our students transfer into SNACS at all grade levels and boast about our small school community.
10. All Learners Welcome
All learners are welcome and encouraged to attend SNACS. Our caring teachers get to know each student as an individual, and successfully support all learners and their families. We provide support services, including counseling, speech, and support from licensed social workers. We never stop working to meet students where they are and get them where they need to be.
Is your child ready to join the SNACS community? Enrollment for the 2024-25 is open now, and we invite you to check out our new campus. We look forward to welcoming your K-8 child to SNACS. Enroll with SNACS today! Call (775) 677- 4500 to take a tour!
About SNACS
Sierra Nevada Academy Charter School (SNACS) is a Tuition-Free Public K-8 Charter School with free preschool options. As Nevada’s first charter school, we have served our community for 25 years as a standout school of choice and personalized learning. We nurture self-directed learners through choice, prioritizing expeditionary learning and offering a unique, proprietary, hands-on P.L.A.Y model (Promoting Learning and Accountability in Youth). Now in a new location, 10 miles north of Reno, SNACS brings the small school experience back to the neighborhood. Education – with a choice! We’re enrolling for Fall 2024-2025.