From left, Rotary President Francisco Serrano, Western Nevada College President Chet Burton, John Kinkella, WNC dean of Student Services, and Larry Goodnight, acting director of the WNC Foundation, accept a check from the Rotary Club of Carson City at the Carson Nugget in Carson City on Tuesday. The organization donated $4,500 to WNC's Jump Start College program which offers high school students the opportunity to earn up to a two-year Associate Degree before graduating from high school.
A donation by the Rotary Club of Carson City will help ease the financial burden for some high school students enrolled in Western Nevada College’s Jump Start College program next fall.
The community service organization provided $4,500 to assist the Jump Start College program, which debuted in the fall of 2014. WNC is partnering with Western Nevada high schools in five school districts, giving junior and senior students the opportunity to earn up to a two-year Associate Degree before graduating from high school.
“We are delighted to hear about the Rotary Club’s decision to donate $4,500 in support of the Jump Start College program,” said John Kinkella, WNC’s Dean of Student Services.
Kinkella said the Rotary Club’s donation will enable a significant number of students to enroll in a three-credit WNC course next fall. Jump Start students typically take classes in English, math, history, psychology, communications, anthropology and philosophy. In addition, WNC has added tracks for Career and Technical Education, and for students needing remedial instruction in math and English.
“Jump Start will become an important part of education for local high schools and especially job placement in western Nevada,” said WNC Interim Foundation Director Larry Goodnight. “Eighty percent of the jobs available in manufacturing, health care, technology and business will require certifications or degrees. This program will help high school graduates enter the workforce sooner with the skills necessary for higher-paying jobs.”
The Rotary Club of Carson City is committed to furthering education, as well as creating positive, lasting changes in communities. After learning area high school students could earn up to an Associate Degree before graduating from high school, the Rotary Club wanted to assist students who needed financial support.