09/01/2026
City and West Las Vegas Schools Expand Partnership to Advance CDL Career Opportunities
On August 12, 2026, during its regular meeting, the Las Vegas City Council approved a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with West Las Vegas High School to support and expand the school’s Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) program.
The partnership is designed to provide students with hands-on learning experiences that develop the knowledge and skills needed for careers in commercial driving, transportation and logistics. Through the collaboration, students will have opportunities to strengthen technical skills, gain workplace experience and increase career awareness while preparing for CDL training and future employment, including potential career opportunities with the City of Las Vegas.
The agreement builds on a successful partnership between the City and West Las Vegas Schools that began last year through the school’s automotive mechanics program. Jimmy Saiz, City Program, Project and Outreach Liaison, and City Fleet Manager James Stephens have worked with students to provide hands-on experience performing basic mechanical repairs and maintenance on City vehicles.
Saiz said the City has worked with Phillip Ulibarri, Vocational Education Instructor for West Las Vegas High School, for approximately a year on this initiative. Building on the success of the automotive program, Ulibarri approached the City about expanding the collaboration to include the CDL program. The new MOU provides a framework to strengthen those efforts and create greater connections between classroom instruction, hands-on training and future careers.
“Our goal is to provide students with more career opportunities here in Las Vegas, give them more reasons to stay local and provide them with the tools and experience they need to advance,” Saiz said.
West Las Vegas Schools Superintendent Christopher Gutierrez shared that the CDL program is now in its fifth year. The program was initially developed in response to a growing shortage of qualified commercial drivers, including school bus drivers and operators of commercial and heavy equipment vehicles. At the time the program was developed, school officials found that the average age of a bus driver was approximately 77 years old, underscoring the need to prepare a new generation of qualified drivers.
Read more at: https://www.lasvegasnm.gov/post/8-27-2026-las-vegas-optic-city-spotlight-city-and-west-las-vegas-schools-expand-partnership-to-ad
