Incline Education FundPosts

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

Thanks to all of you who have expressed support for the generosity of the Parkside Inn and the needs of our Incline Educational Staff. You CAN make a difference. With your $35.00 donation, an IES, IMS, or IHS Staff members' one night stay at the Parkside in will be FREE.
Thank you again, Incline Village. And thank you IHS, IHS Boosters, IMS, IMS Jr. Boosters, IES, IES PTA and the Parkside Inn.
(This pilot program will be reviewed after the end of this 21-22 school year--and your suggestions of dinner and/or breakfast will be researched).
Donate today!

PARTNERS IN EDUCATION! New to Incline, the Britney Bladel State Farm Insurance Agency has wasted no time in becoming a valued community partner. With a matching grant from State Farm, the Britney Bladel local agency was a lead business partner in making the Incline Elementary School Makerspace a reality. Thank you again to the Britney Bladel State Farm Agency!

Incline Education Fund is thrilled to announce that the recent Incline Elementary School (IES) Makerspace Drive is a success. With the generous assistance of local businesses including Tahoe Lending-Cardinal Financial, State Farm Insurance Agent Britney Bladel and Hyatt Regency Lake Tahoe Resort, Spa & Casino along with local service/advocacy groups Rotary Tahoe-Incline, Rotary Club of Incline Village and AAUW Tahoe-Nevada and also joined by the Incline Elementary School PTA and additional charitable donor support, Incline Elementary students will now have a fully equipped makerspace.

Thanks to the outpouring of local philanthropy during the makerspace drive, the Incline Education Fund was also able to successfully apply for the recent Nevada Office of Science and Technology (OSIT) Northwestern Nevada Regional STEM grant. Community support for the IES makerspace was a leading factor in acquiring the recently announced $17,873.00 award.

With initial seed funding from the Incline Education Fund, the IES makerspace opened this fall. With a semester of makerspace classes complete, Incline Elementary School Principal Dan Zimmerman noted that the school has already noticed a positive improvement in students across the board. "The students are showing a greater degree of individual problem solving capability and ability to work successfully within a group dynamic." After the documented learning loss due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this is excellent news indeed.