Nevada College Kickstart Program

According to Nevada State Treasurer Kate Marshall, “Research has found that children with a college savings account are up to seven times more likely to attend college than those without an account, regardless of family income, ethnicity, or the educational attainment of the child’s parents.” According to research, it doesn’t matter how much money is in the children’s accounts, but just the fact that the children know that college is something to save for is what makes so large of an impact on them. Fascinating!

That is why today Marshall participated in an exciting new beginning of a program that will immensely benefit many children as she launched the Nevada College Kick Start Program at Walter Bracken Elementary School.

The concept is to provide an initial $50 deposit in a college savings account for students. That is how the seed of anticipating a college education is getting planted in these children.

This is not only happening in Las Vegas, but all over Nevada. Another incredible part of the program is that it is funded from program manager fees paid to the state, not from tax payers’ wallets.

Here’s to watching those seeds grow!

College Isn’t Cheap – Fill Out Your FAFSA!

As Sophomores and Juniors, you may hear your Senior friends talking about “FAFSA” a lot.  You may figure, “no need to worry, I’ve got years  before that.” Then, you wake up. Your parents are freaking out about your college applications, and senioritis is seriously kicking in.

According to https://fafsa.ed.gov/help.htm, “Completing and submitting a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is the single most important thing you can do to get assistance paying for college.”

You might ask yourself what in the world does this have to do with me?

However, if you are in high school, or are considering going to college or returning to college, this has everything to do with you!

Many students do not know how easy it can be to get money to help with college.

The FAFSA website mentioned above also goes over many fears or myths that students might think would stand in their way when it comes to receiving money for college. These may include thinking that you or your parents make too much money so you won’t qualify for aid, that you have to have good grades to receive aid, that you’re too old for financial aid, or even that the form is too difficult or complicated to fill out.

NONE of these are true!

We already went over why you need it, so let’s go over more specifically what it is.

It is merely a FREE application for federal student aid that can come in different forms including: federal grants, loans, and work-study.

See how easy it is to be walked through the application process and have all your questions answered. Visit the above mentioned website - https://fafsa.ed.gov/help.htm.

Also, be sure to check out this awesome website https://getschooled.com/fafsa-resources.

This website, Get Schooled, has tons of helpful tips and links from not only the experts, but also students like you.

Their topics include:

• Finding out which parent to use for the FAFSA
• Getting an estimate on your aid package
• All of the different types of aid that you might qualify for
• FAFSA tips from your peers
• FAFSA on Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube

Go check it out! It’s not scary at all.

Agassi Grand Opening

Andson is embarking on yet another new journey as we prepare to open our 13^th location at the Andre Agassi Boys & Girls Club on February 18^th….only 5 days away! With new tutors counting down the days to the grand opening, their enthusiasm bursts through as they discuss their desire to meet their soon to be students and their hopes that their own enthusiasm will quickly spread to those students. They are also counting that their wish for a waiting list of eager students will be recognized.

Our tutors are super excited and can’t wait to begin the new program and build a community for their students who will have a safe environment and will be equipped with all the learning tools they need.  That,  along with our tutors’ patience, perseverance, and one-on-one and small group time will give students the attention and assistance that is not always available to them elsewhere.

We at Andson are prepared to help our students conquer all challenges as we deliver a structured concise program to the members of the Andre Agassi Boys and Girls Club.

Nevada calling for Mentors, Tutors, and Motivators

Strong Start Nevada is a community outreach program with similar education goals as Andson that believes that early childhood experiences lay the foundation for that child’s success throughout life. According to an article they wrote, “Young children’s brains develop 700 synapses [neural connections that support learning and skills] every second. Research shows that children begin developing their science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) skills well before high school, middle school or elementary school.” How awesome is that!?  The younger the child, the more the child’s brain will retain information.

The Problem-

Nevada’s children have fallen behind in education. According to Strong Start Nevada, in Nevada we rank 50^th in education in the nation. What exactly does this mean?

• 70% of our children never go to preschool
• 75% of our fourth graders cannot read proficiently
• 71% of our eighth graders cannot do math proficiently
• 42% of our high school students graduate late

The Result-

The destructive impact this has on our young adults who are struggling and not keeping up in Nevada’s current education system is limitless. Young adults are ill prepared for the world and work force, and in most cases they are not equipped to meet the standards that industries look for in their hiring processes. How many of our young adults are we talking about?

According to Strong Start Nevada:

• 75% of young adults (ages 17-24) would not qualify for the U.S. military, or meet the physical, behavioral, or educational standards that industries also look for today.

At-risk children are:

• 25% more likely to drop out of school
• 40% more likely to become teen parents
• 50% more likely to be placed in special education
• 60% more likely to never attend college
• 70% more likely to be arrested for a violent crime

The Plan of Action-

What do we need to do to better prepare our children in Nevada?

• Get personally involved in your children’s education. If you are a working parent, send your children to an after school program where they can receive the mentoring, tutoring, and homework help that they need to keep up to speed with their education, and keep their learning process as stress free as possible.
• Donate to organizations that support educating the children of Southern Nevada. Help provide learning resources and tools for them, as well as make sure they are affordable for all students.
• Volunteer. Personally make a difference in a child’s life by volunteering in organizations, such as Andson, and becoming a child’s mentor, tutor, and motivation.

January Stars of the Month

Congratulations to Alijah Elgas (kindergarten), Brianna Bonner (third grade), and Melanie Jimenez (third grade) for winning the Stars of the Month awards for outstanding performance in tutoring at the Boyd Club location! Great job guys for being January’s outstanding students of the month!

Keep up the smiles and hard work!

January Tutor of the Month - Laura Bastian

Laura Bastian is the winner of our January “Tutor of the Month” here at Andson. Currently a speech-language pathologist at William Ferron Elementary, she treats speech and language disorders from pre-kindergarten through fifth grade. Laura has over 10 years of teaching on her plate and has taught preschool, first and fourth grade, and special education in both middle and high school. She has been both a tutor and a tutoring coordinator for much of that time in both Illinois and Nevada. Laura also has quite the busy life outside of the classroom. When she is not with students, she loves traveling with her family, visiting unique museums, and having one-of-a-kind experiences. Other activities she and her family do together include volunteering across the Valley.

Also near and dear to Laura are her efforts to educate her students about college. Therefore, in order to kindle an interest in college in her students, she has her students currently doing a pen-pal project with her daughter’s sorority at Iowa State University.

Thank you Ms. Bastian for all you do for our students!

Andson moves to a 9/80 schedule in 2014

Our team here at Andson works hard. Really hard. Serving over 3,000 youth in 2013-2014 with 10 admin staff is something that we are quite proud of (not to leave out the nearly 50 tutors that make all that possible). We have struggled in the past to figure out a creative way to solve the issue of long days for our full-time staff. Overtime can be costly, and various split schedules became difficult to maintain or manage. Over the holidays we closed our offices to give the team some much needed downtime. That’s when Sonia and I started looking for a way to solve the problem of our team’s schedule. We looked to two industries that clearly have mastered shifts and calendars for efficiency and coverage - hospitality and engineering. What came out of our brief immersion were two decisions that we think are for the better. Looking toward the engineering industry, we were able to gain some control on our calendar. We moved to a 9/80 schedule. That means, each pay period, our team members that are full-time will work 9 hours each day, M-Th. Friday will be an 8 hour day for the first Friday of the pay period. The next Friday - payday, is a day off. This schedule has freed our calendars of crazy half-days and trying to keep track of who has which day off. What’s even better, our team will have two, three-day weekends each month. That equals 24 extra days off each year. To us, this is the perfect marriage of work hard, play hard.  

From the hospitality industry, we were able to get rid of all the terminology for days off. Life happens. All full-time staff at Andson get 10 paid days off per year. Use them however you care to. Not worrying about sick days, personal days, etc. allows us to focus on our mission, and less on clock-watching our capable team.  

At this point, leaning areas like HR allows us to dedicate as much of our administrative staff to programming as possible. We are not interested in micro-management, and we’re proud to innovate in areas where others may not think to.

We are looking forward to a fantastic 2014. Read Sonia’s post if you have not already.  

Dear Friends, (Jan 2014)

Dear Friends: All of us at Andson, Inc. would like to take this opportunity to wish you all the Very Best for 2014.  We are so very proud of the many milestones we reached in 2013.  And we thank all of our Supporters and Partners who helped us accomplish each of them.  We are looking forward to continually working together to deliver our much-needed programs to students across the valley.

We kicked off the New Year with the most amazing party for our team of Board Members, Tutors, Admin Staff and our Community Partners on January 11, 2014.  A heartfelt Thank You to Southern Highlands Golf Club and Southern Wine and Spirits for their incredibly generous contributions, support and partnership.

On New Year’s Eve 2013, we launched our new website powered by Larym Design.  Please do take the time to visit and re-visit it, as it is being continually updated with additional details of our activities and services in Las Vegas, Henderson, and Boulder City.

Throughout the month of January, our Academic Team will be busy conducting our very own Aims Web Testing for our hundreds of registered students, while continually streamlining and structuring the Homework Help and Tutoring at our eleven locations in Clark County.

At the same time our Financial Literacy Team will be delivering January’s Financial Literacy Lessons to all 25 classrooms at Bracken Elementary School.  We continually strive to utilize the most current materials, so lessons are revised on an ongoing basis. We thank our partners, United Way’s YPS, Silver State Schools Credit Union, and Bracken Elementary School for this successful collaboration.

Additionally, the Team is gearing up to start the second series of our Financial Literacy Workshops at Desert Oasis High School in the latter part of January.  Approximately 1,200 juniors and seniors will benefit from these lessons.

Early February, the Academic Team will launch our Homework Help and Tutoring Program at Sunrise Acres Elementary School through the City of Las Vegas.  We are eagerly looking forward to launching a new pilot of our supplemental after school assistance to the students at that location.

Taking on yet another challenge, we are currently developing a GED preparatory curriculum, which will be deployed early this spring.  Through a partnership with St. Jude's Ranch for Children, this program will serve young adults currently in transitional housing and/or aging out of the foster care system.

Again, thank you all for continued support, and for making 2013 an incredible year of success.  Together we will make 2014 an even better year!

Fondly,

Sonia

December Tutor of the Month - Julie Tacker

Julie Tacker is the winner of our first "Tutor of the Month" here at Andson. Julie is a 4th grade teacher at Evelyn Stuckey Elementary School and is currently in her 8th year of teaching. Her favorite subjects to teach are Math and Science. She does not have a least favorite subject. Julie spends her free time playing tennis with her son, watching her daughter's soccer games, and horseback riding when she can. We have had the privilege of working with Ms. Tacker in the tutoring program for the last two years. She is very hard working and dedicated to her tutoring students. She is a very genuine person and does a lot to help these kids become more successful in their classes. We have heard nothing but positive comments from parents about their children's progress in school. One parent said "My daughter now has self-confidence in school because being in Ms. Tacker's tutoring group has made her more confident in her reading abilities." It has been our pleasure to work with such a wonderful teacher. Thank You Ms. Tacker for all that you do for Andson's and Stuckey's students!

Andson's New Year Kickoff Party

We Don’t Compete, We Complement. That was the theme of Andson’s After Holiday Party this past Saturday, January 11th.  Between board member’s schedules, staff’s holiday plans, and the high cost of trying to host an event before Christmas, we opted to move the event to January.  What better way to kickoff the new year?

Andson’s staff, volunteers, and partners mean so much to us - we have had amazing, solid growth because of each of them.  This gathering shows the strong, interconnected bonds all of us within the organization have made over the last 3 years.

We could not have asked for a more beautiful location and great food - Pacific Links’ Southern Highlands Golf Club hosted the event and will continue to support Andson’s busy event schedule for 2014.  Andson’s team deserves a special venue, and Southern Highlands Golf Club does a fantastic job.

B Sweet Candy Boutique from Summerlin provided a beautiful candy buffet - who knew this was going to be such a hit with our guests!  Thanks so much B Sweet for providing an upscale twist on Swedish Fish, Gummy Bears and Cotton Candy.  It was even Andson branded!

In an age of digital cameras, there’s something nostalgic and awesome about Silly Shotz Photo Booth.  Everyone enjoyed their photo strips at the end of the evening (we also have the digital versions of these, please contact us if you’d like copies emailed).

Live music was provided by entertainer Betsy Holm and was the perfect background for the event.

We don’t compete, We Complement goes much further than just the event, however.  Through each program Andson facilitates, we strive not to duplicate efforts. We want to partner, collaborate, and grow for the youth here in Southern Nevada.

We plan on great things for 2014 and appreciate all of our staff, volunteers, and partners.  Thanks to all those in attendance!

Welcome to Andson’s New Site

We get to work with amazing youth every day - why would we hide that? Andson’s branding has gone through significant changes in the past few months.  We are so pleased to finally debut our new website.  It has been over 4 months in the making to create this web experience - to really portray our Core Values and what we do in as fun and inviting of a way as we feel about this work each day.

Most importantly, however, this site lives, breaths, and IS Andson.  You will see more ways to share in the experience we provide students and youth each day.

We have a more robust section to get to know our team and board members; we’ll have more of our videos and photographs actually out there to experience.

We are ecstatic about the amazing work Larym Design has done for this site.  Please keep checking back - we are adding and modifying pieces of the site daily now that we have it up and running.

Happy New Year & Thank you for your support!

Kindest Regards,

Sonia Anderson CEO & Founder

Change Attitudes in Youth, Results Will Follow

With the heavy focus on data and assessment in the youth services area, sometimes it's important to take a look to the qualitative side. The results can be easier to spot and motivate staff and youth both to continue their hard work.  

This morning on Lifehacker there was an article featured from the blog, Ready for Zero, entitled “5 Big Mistakes Keeping You in Debt.” These articles come up often, and are usually a solid set of guidelines that most people could allude to all on their own, but don't.

One reason for this in particular stands out in this writeup.

They Forget to Change Their Attitude. This can be one of the hardest mistakes to make and one of the hardest to learn from. The reason is that humans don't like change. For the most part, we're comfortable with where we are right now. But for those of us in debt, usually we have to change our attitude to change our outcome. We have to start thinking in a new way and change how we look at money. The best way to accomplish this is to proactively decide how you'll incorporate new beliefs about your finances into your daily life.

As adults, we’re comfortable. Most of the time, far too comfortable. It’s difficult to imagine changing one’s entire routine or lifestyle - that’s why going to the gym or finding time for a new hobby can be challenging as an adult. What’s important to remember, however, is that these barriers are considerably lower for youth. Fads, games, and even circles of friends have an amazing power to transform a youth’s behaviors very quickly.

Andson works hard each day to move those behaviors and perceptions in youth to new heights - both in Personal Finance and Academics. Some days are more rewarding than others. What we’ve accomplished and witnessed this year in transformations, however, has been inspiring.

A student at one site I personally oversee seemed like he was on a path to medication, an ILP (Individual Learning Plan), and perhaps even counseling or some sort of treatment. A kindergartener, he likely did not receive any early childhood development, and was a distraction to the rest of the group. In just a few short weeks of structure and personalized attention with a tutor - behaviors have changed, the distractions have nearly ceased, and he actually likes doing his homework (gasp!).

Personal Finance and Academics do not have to be chore, they don’t have to be a fight - but we must take the time to invest in attitudinal change. The outcomes are clear, rewarding, and transformation can be seen on the spot.

Believe me, it will come quicker for youth than for most of us adults.

Andson Academics Launches AIMSweb Assessment Program

In order to more accurately and effectively monitor the progress of our students, Andson Academics has incorporated the usage of the AIMSweb assessment and diagnostics software into our Academic Support program for the 2013-2014 school year. This tool allows us to benchmark and progress monitor our students to further diagnose the exact areas in which they need the most attention.  AIMSweb also gives us the capability to compare our students’ progress to state and national norms much more easily.

Many schools across the country, including Clark County School District, have begun integrating this software into their assessment processes, and most of our tutors are already very familiar with the system.  Using the AIMSweb software gives the Andson Academics program a unique advantage over other tutoring programs in southern Nevada.

We are very excited about what this means for our program and the enhanced support that our students will receive with the implementation of this software.

Andson introduces characters into our brand

While diving heavily into a rebrand of Andson we've changed a few things - loosing the "Foundation," developing new strategies to further our mission, and becoming more friendly for our client - kids and parents. Characters drive imagination and excitement for students through the learning process - we've never thought differently, but we haven't necessarily embraced a youthful element in our past branding efforts.

What we've also realized is that students care very little that we are out there doing "educational," things. Instead, they care about the teachers and staff and the relationships they've formed with those adults. Education is an afterthought to them - which makes perfect sense for a young child.

What we've coined is "Powerful Stuff." Anyone that goes through our programming will be a more powerful youth (and student, and child, even citizen) than those that do not. We're communicating Powerful Stuff through robots, monsters and characters we develop.

We're also opening the doors for student-led artwork - which makes our creative team's life even easier. Overall, we're very happy with where this is going, and encourage non-profits and organizations serving youth to get doodling - who knows what you can come up with!

Andson gets big in Texas

It's always a dilemma - the work we do in Financial Literacy is great, why not take it national? Our answer is usually "No," followed by a statement on how you would lose the aspect of mentoring, the quality will be diminished, curriculum less effective etc. But what if we were approached by a group that was willing to recreate the culture of mentorship, and not attempt to use volunteers or one-time teachers for a lesson?

We have had the amazing opportunity of licensing our curriculum to a passionate group of educators. The Comal Independent School District approached Andson to use the Andson Money Curriculum at the Fourth Grade Level for 18 schools. (Aside - how in the world would Andson be known in Texas, you ask? The introduction was made by way of friends at St. Jude's Ranch for Children - they operate campuses both in Boulder City, NV and San Antonio, Texas. Without The Ranch, we would have not been prompted to visit the Lone Star State). Andson co-branded and developed the materials, lessons and presentations to work for the demographic of Comal ISD - a district roughly the size of New Jersey.

What we've realized however is that our goal of supporting Southern Nevada doesn't mean our products and services just stay in Southern Nevada.

Look at this opportunity: First, there is a licensing cost - which means that Andson can have a stream of revenue that goes back to help us develop further products and services; Second, with the right partner, our commitment to mentorship and small, strong quality programs can continue. Comal goes above and beyond to pick the best instructors possible for our curriculum - we went down in early October to train 17 instructors. Some were long time substitutes that have been assigned to a particular school (and know that school's students well), some worked for the local Communities in Schools program, two were even school principals. Needless to say we were able to checkmark the criterion for passion.

Thirdly, and most importantly is the feedback and development opportunity. We have just opened our curriculum up to a feedback loop including 1,250 new students - something that would take a massive staff on Andson's part to facilitate locally. Comal ISD and Andson will continue expanding till we are able to blanket the Elementary level, hopefully developing a feeder alignment and carry these students through their entire schooling with targeted lesson on Financial Literacy.

Exposing our curriculum to new bodies of students means we can move exponentially faster to make our products and services even stronger - nearly impossible to match solely with local staff. Andson, for example, will monitor the Pre and Post Test assessments and will have access to feedback on Parental Engagement via homework assignments. These pieces will go back into Research and Development here locally, and then get rolled out to any licensees we may have in the future.

This may be small win for other organizations that are built with revenues and licensing in mind. But for Andson, the idea that we can build a culture and climate in Financial Education from 2000 miles away, and retain some control, is an empowering concept. We are so excited to open up the doors for licensing and for our new counterparts in the Lone Star State.

Thanks to our friends at St. Jude's Ranch for making the connections, and we hope that Andson will get as big as everything else in Texas!

And of course, if interested in licensing, feel free to contact us via the website - we'd love to explore a new relationship.

More locations and new initiatives for the new school year

We are excited to report that Andson's Homework Help and Tutoring program has kicked off another year with more locations and some new initiatives! We are on track to have an estimated 1,200 students at 15 sites (anticipated by the end of this year) receiving Homework Help and approximately 500 students receiving small group tutoring assistance. Over the past two years we have done lots of things right. We have put close to 1,000 students on a path to success, benefitting from our free Homework Help and tutoring programs. We have partnered with amazing organizations like the Boys & Girls Clubs, St. Jude's Ranch for Children, Communities In Schools and After School All Stars. Our tutored students improve their performance an average of one to two grade levels in all academic areas! We have lots to be proud of!

We want to do even better! Providing meaningful and much needed academic support to more students in interesting and individualized ways is always the goal. Based on feedback from parents, tutors and community partners, we have identified two major areas of improvement this year:

1) Homework Help activities will be more fun, engaging and productive. We are really structuring our locations and separating kids by grade and ability levels while offering incentives and prizes to those who complete their homework correctly. We are providing new and better books and will be introducing educational games as a way to instill a lifelong love of learning.

2) Tutoring groups will be smaller, allowing Andson tutors to really hone in on student needs and develop Individualized Learning Plans. This personalized approach to student needs along with a new system of periodic academic assessments, progress monitoring and benchmarking will help assure that no child falls behind in school.

Overall, at this early stage in the school year, our Tutors and staff are busily working hand in hand to assess, monitor and track student progress. Getting to know our students has been a blast. Stay tuned for more updates…

Financial Literacy Update

With the new school year off and running, it's time to shift Andson's gears back into our Financial Literacy Programming.

The Piggy Bank Project at Bracken Elementary School enters its second year and the Andson team will be back in the classrooms delivering financial literacy lessons. New this year, there will be four tiered curriculums differentiated by grades and age groups - this is another example of Andson's flexibility and adaptability to the needs of our students. In tune with this philosophy, Andson has also developed a web-based school banking application that will simplify deposit tracking and reporting.

Promoting financial literacy at an early age will now become a reality in Comal County, Texas. As part of a pilot program for 4th graders, the five-lesson curriculum developed by Andson will be used at 18 different schools and will teach 1,500 fourth grade students the basics of personal finance. Andson is eager to share our passion and expertise with other communities and school districts.

Financial literacy lessons will also continue at Chaparral and Desert Oasis High Schools. Once again, Andson will be tailoring the lessons based on the socio-economic needs of the students and aiming to build mentoring relationships. We are excited for these locations, as well as adding new sites and partners for our High School curriculums this year.

Financial Literacy is at the heart of this organization. This summer was a very special time for us as we were awarded the Pinnacle Award by Treasurer Kate Marshall. Andson was one of three in Nevada to achieve this prestigious award!

The Importance of Graduating High School

Generally, higher FCAT achievement, low absenteeism, grade promotion, low dropout rates, and less interaction with the juvenile justice system have all been associated with a higher likelihood of completing high school, which has significant effects on the individual and taxpayers in general. High school graduates earn higher salaries on average than those who do not graduate from high school, which benefits them directly, and also translates to indirect benefits to the economy as a whole by increased discretionary spending capacity, higher tax collections, and lower social program costs. UNEMPLOYMENT High school graduates are less likely to face unemployment and depend on government assistance relative to those that did not complete high school. The latest unemployment rate data available for various degrees of educational attainment shows that the unemployment rate was 4.4 percentage points more severe for those who did not complete high school, and the unemployment rate drops for each higher level of educational achievement. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, only 9.2 percent of the working poor in 2010, were high school graduates with no further degree of educational attainment, whereas 21.4 percent of the working poor had no high school diploma.

Those who are considered the working poor are much more likely to utilize taxpayer-funded assistance programs. Nationally, according to the U.S. Health and Human Services Department, 43.2 percent of Temporary Assistance to Needy Family (TANF) recipients did not have 12 years of formal education. According to the DOE Annual Outcomes Report, of the 2009-10 group measured, 45 percent of those receiving public assistance were high school dropouts.

POVERTY Recent data shows that the poverty rate for those with less than a high school diploma was 28.4 percent, as compared to 16.1 percent for those who completed high school. Poverty rates are lower for the population with higher and advanced degrees.

OVERALL ECONOMIC IMPACT According to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), the cost of Grade Retention nationally was over $34.8 billion in 2009 for grades K–8.

For every 10 students not held back in any given year, taxpayers realize a total cost avoidance of at least $92,100 per year Students who successfully complete high school are significantly more likely to have a better future and thus give back to society. According to the U.S. Census, on average, persons with a high school diploma or the equivalent earn approximately $7,270 more (or 42.3 percent) per year than those without a high school diploma.

Applying the Census figures on average wages from above, each FBGC participant that graduates from high school will have additional lifetime earnings of $290,800, assuming a 40-year career, compared to non-high school graduates. These career earnings are made even more possible without the barriers to employment that a criminal background brings an individual. Assuming that 100 individuals at risk of not completing high school would actually graduate, the expected aggregate lifetime earnings increase for these 100 graduates over their career is $29,080,000.

 (Taken from the Florida Tax Watch)

Leading With Style Benefits Andson

Galleria at Sunset chose Andson as the beneficiary of the "Leading With Style" fashion show presented on Saturday, September 21. Partnering with the International Academy of Design & Technology (IADT), Galleria Mall launched the fall fashion season with an event that not only showcased the latest trends from its retailers, but also featured community leaders as models.

It was a fabulous evening, an original mix of gorgeous and courageous people - all coming together to have fun for a good cause. Local elected officials, youth and community leaders walked the runway and helped Andson raise funds for its community programs. Andson's board member Bryan Kroten strutted the catwalk and proudly received a $500 donation made by Galleria at Sunset.

BIG thanks to Galleria Mall, IADT and all those involved in making this event possible:

James Campbell Productions Stefanie Jay, Morning Anchor, Fox5 Vegas RJ Khalaf, Student Body President, Coronado High School Councilwoman Debra March, City of Henderson Ward 2 MJ Maynard, Assistant General Manager, Regional Transportation Commission (RTC) Bentley McDonald, Nevada State College Student Alliance Councilwoman Gerri Schroder, City of Henderson Ward 1 Arianni Valencia, Student Ambassador, Nevada State College

and many thanks to our own Bryan ...!

Bryan Kroten is a community leader of the hospitality industry and an education advocate. Bryan serves on the Board of Directors of Andson providing guidance on its marketing and special events efforts. His expertise and leadership come from his position as Vice President of Marketing for Maverick Aviation Group and his involvement with the Las Vegas Hospitality Association, as their Chairman of the Board. This year, Bryan was selected as one of the "40 Under 40" best and brightest business professionals in Southern Nevada.

Andson Academics needed! Tutoring Landscape Changes for 2013-14

As we wrap up our Summer Reading Program, our amazing Back 2 Class Bash and approach this new school year - our services are proving to be more valuable to Southern Nevada than ever before. The reality is, as state funding to schools and other entities to provide academic support dwindles, there are less organizations providing tutoring and academic support Andson Academics - which makes our role even more critical.A recent article from Education Week reports:

Many companies that once provided supplemental education services, or tutoring mandated at academically struggling schools under the No Child Left Behind law, are now scrambling to find new streams of income, or have already closed their doors, in the past year. Steve Pines, president of the Education Industry Association, said that at its peak several years ago, about 2,500 companies and other organizations were approved to work with students using supplement-services funding allocated to improve students' academic performance. About half of the state-approved providers are "commercial entities," according to Pines. Other providers are a mix of school districts themselves, followed by community and faith-based organizations. Today, Pines estimates that the number of organizations providing those services has dropped by 50 percent.

Andson did think at one point that we may apply for some of these various funding sources, but we never have. All of our funding has come from Sonia's initial investment. That said, we are focused this year on securing new, creative ways of funding our programming to make sure our commitment to Southern Nevada can continue for years to come. Our extremely supportive Board has clearly made "thinking outside the box," a general principle in regard to garnering support for an initiative for this upcoming year.

With new agreements with the City of Las Vegas for SAFEKEY locations, our 9 other locations through Boys & Girls Clubs, St. Jude's Ranch for Children, and Communities in Schools as well as interest from various other community partners - this is only our beginning. This school year we have agreed to 13 total sites, with two additional sites in discussion.

Although we have a business background and can apply some very atypical strategies to fundraising, programming and curriculum, we continue to passionately operate Andson as the organization it is - one truly committed to our community. We are focused, and ready for this school year!