Donor will match up to $60K for school foundation

In continuation of the Carson City Schools Foundation annual giving campaign “Funding Future Dreams,” an anonymous donor has challenged the community to meet the foundation’s $60,000 goal and promised to match contributions up to that amount.

Any funds raised in excess of $60,000 will be used to provide additional support to students and teachers in the Carson City School District.

From now through June 30, the foundation seeks community contributions to support three programs: the teacher classroom mini-grant and department/school-site grants that help purchase special project materials; student book and material fees for students qualifying for the JumpStart College program and exam fees for Advanced Placement (AP) students in need.

“We had a huge outpouring of support with our fundraising efforts last year for teacher mini-grants and the JumpStart program. This year we are expanding our annual giving campaign to include AP students whose families can’t afford the test fees,” said Steven Reynolds, CCSF board chair. “There is no doubt this year’s ‘Funding Future Dreams’ campaign will again offer tremendous value to our students, their families and our local workforce.”

Last year, the fundraising campaign for JumpStart raised nearly $34,000 for students, exceeding the initial goal of $24,000. The foundation’s goal this year is to raise a total of $60,000: $20,000 for teacher/department/school grants, $20,000 for books and materials for JumpStart students and $20,000 for exam fees for AP students.

JumpStart is a dual-enrollment opportunity for high school students to experience college courses through Western Nevada College while simultaneously earning high school credits. JumpStart College participants are able to complete up to 60 college credits through WNC, potentially receiving an associate’s degree at about the same time they graduate from high school.

Taking AP courses and exams in high school help students pass college-level curricula and earn college credits that save time and money on tuition. In some cases, students can even skip certain introductory college courses if they score well enough on their AP exams.

AP exams cost as much as $95 per test, and the approximate cost for materials for JumpStart hovers around $160 per student.

For information about the CCSF, visit ccschoolsfoundation.org.