The Incline Education Fund worked with the Nevada First-Gen Network to pilot a mentoring program for Incline Middle School students this summer.
The backstory: Nevada State Senator Heidi Seevers Gansert sponsored a bill in 2021 that led to the creation of the Nevada First-Gen Network (NFGN), a statewide initiative to help students across Nevada graduate from high school and achieve higher education.
Gansert was familiar with the 20+ year success of UNR’s Dean’s Future Scholars (DFS) mentoring program and wanted to find a way to expand that model throughout the state.
DFS Director, Dr. Mariluz Garcia agreed to pilot a program to find a way to do just that. She reached out to the Incline Education Fund to see if they would be interested in collaborating on a summer camp for students in Incline Village. The NFGN is an extension of that program.
The Incline summer camp ran 4 days/week for 3 weeks and gave the Incline Middle School (IMS) students an opportunity to gain college exposure through University of Nevada, Reno (UNR) college visits, tours and programming. IMS students were bussed to Reno twice/week to take part in activities on the UNR campus and were in Incline Village the other two days/week. Students spent mornings participating in STEM projects and learning about the many colleges at UNR and the other half of the day learning about leadership, team-building and just having fun. While in Incline, the Incline Education Fund coordinated the STEM programming for students with the UC Davis TERC program and partnered with IVGID, Pet Network and High Altitude Fitness for their outdoor activities.
The beauty of the program is that the NFGN mentors are graduates of the program themselves. They understand the importance of the mentorship piece and have pledged to continue mentoring these students throughout the school year and beyond. Regular check-in opportunities throughout the year are designed to deepen those relationships and help keep students engaged and on a path toward college or a vocation.
A special thanks to the American Association of University Women (Tahoe Nevada), the Parasol Community Foundation and the Boys & Girls Club, North Lake Tahoe in Incline Village, and Vicki Cruz Photography for their collaboration.
With your assistance, IEF can grow this program, not only for current participants but for others down the line. Your dollars would be used to inspire students to love learning and give them the tools to create a successful career path. If you would like to donate to this program, please go to the IEF website and choose Dean’s Future Scholars under the Donate tab: https://www.inclineeducationfund.org/donate/
Image by Vicki Cruz Photography: Senator Gansert and community partners celebrate a successful collaboration in Incline Village.
Back row: Tim Kelly-IVGID, Heather Segale- UC Davis/TERC
Middle row: Osvaldo Jimenez-NFGN/UNR, Simi Balter-Pet Network, Mary Danahey-Incline Education Fund, NV Senator Heidi Gansert, Mariluz Garcia-NFGN/UNR/DFS, Zaira Diaz-NFGN/UNR
Front row: Kari Michael-Incline Middle School Principal, Sharon Schrage-Incline Education Fund, Becky Arevalos- Mendoza-NFGN/UNR, Aryam Monge-NFGN/UNR, Alison Toy-UC Davis/TERC
