Henderson Parent Files Complaint Over Carrie Buck and Mike Johnson Visit to Pinecrest Charter School

What happened

A Pinecrest parent has asked state officials to look into an Aug. 25, 2026 visit by state Sen. Carrie Buck and U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson to Pinecrest Academy Sloan Canyon, a charter school in Henderson, the Nevada Current reported. The parent, Adelei Kaplan, alleges the school was used for partisan political activity, which she says conflicts with its nonprofit tax status.

Buck, a Republican, is challenging Democratic Rep. Dina Titus in Nevada's Congressional District 1. According to the Current, Buck previously served as the school's principal and executive director. Her campaign did not respond to numerous requests for comment, the outlet reported.

Why the visit is being questioned

Nonprofit rules for charter schools

Like all charter schools in Nevada, Pinecrest Academy Sloan Canyon is designated a 501(c)(3) nonprofit under the federal tax code, the Current reported. The IRS says such organizations are "absolutely prohibited" from engaging in political activity, and the school's by-laws also state that prohibition.

The Current noted that charter schools are publicly funded but are not subject to local school district regulations. In Clark County, those district rules prohibit campaigning except at organized events where all candidates are represented. More coverage of local races is on our elections page.

What was said and shown

Buck's campaign posted photos from the National Republican Congressional Committee showing her and Johnson at the school, and an NRCC camera crew accompanied the pair, according to the Current. Citing media reports, the outlet said Johnson spoke about low taxes and small government, praised President Donald Trump's Big Beautiful Bill, and highlighted Buck's "extraordinary track record" as a principal and education reformer.

The Nevada Globe reported that after visiting classrooms, Buck and Johnson held a media availability focused on Trump's new Education Freedom Tax Credit and Buck's three-decade career in Nevada education. "That sounds like campaigning to me," Kaplan wrote in her complaint, as quoted by the Current. She also argued the NRCC's role in taking the photos showed it was a political event.

How the school and others responded

Pinecrest's position

Pinecrest officials maintain Buck and Johnson were not campaigning, the Current reported. Coby Sherlock, the school's treasurer, said by email that students are not ideal campaign audiences because most are not of voting age. News reports cited by the Current, however, said the pair met with high school seniors who are or will soon be old enough to vote.

Sherlock told the Current that parents of affected students were notified and given a chance to opt out. A student who posted a video about the visit told the outlet that parents were not notified until after the event. Sherlock also said the school regularly welcomes elected officials from both parties, but he declined to name other officials who have visited.

Titus and a nonprofit lawyer weigh in

In a statement to the Current, Titus said Buck "exploited schoolchildren for political gain" and should be held accountable if she broke federal law. Bradley Schrager, an attorney who specializes in nonprofit law, told the outlet that parents should not expect someone at school to tell their children how to vote. He added that he did not expect federal action, saying, "It's Trump's IRS."

Where the complaint stands

Kaplan, whose children attend Pinecrest's adjacent sister campus, filed her complaint with the State Public Charter School Authority and asked the agency to investigate. According to the Current, the state responded this week by asking whether she had contacted the school's board of directors. She then filed a second complaint with that board. Our schools coverage tracks other oversight issues affecting local campuses.

Kaplan wrote that she had spoken with other Pinecrest parents, but that most were too afraid to formally speak up in the current political environment, the Current reported.

What to watch next

• How the Pinecrest board of directors responds to Kaplan's second complaint.
• Whether the State Public Charter School Authority takes further action after its initial reply to Kaplan.
• Whether Buck's campaign responds to the allegations, after not answering the Current's requests for comment.
• How the issue plays into Buck's challenge to Rep. Dina Titus in Congressional District 1.