Originally constructed around 1950 from old Army Air Corps Barracks discarded from the Stead Air Force Base north of Reno, the Sierra Vista Elementary school was planned for replacement before the Great Recession. Rather than allow funding constraints delay improvements, the Washoe County School District elected to move forward with a remodel and expansion to bring the school up to par with peer elementary schools within the District.

The 7,645-square-foot addition includes a multipurpose room, administration area, and two new classrooms totaling 1,900 square feet. The existing library has been remodeled and converted into a third new classroom, while the existing multipurpose room has been repurposed into a modern library with numerous accessibility and technology upgrades to accommodate the Science, Technology, Engineering and Math, or STEM, focused curriculum enhancements.

The school was renamed the Dorothy Lemelson STEM Academy.