Employees of the Reno office of Grant Thornton CPAs host an annual Christmas party for students at Elmcrest Elementary School.
The company provides cash prizes for a reading program at the school just northwest of downtown Reno.
In past years, company employees and their families have helped staff an afterschool homework club.
The reason for the company's commitment? "It's community involvement.
It helps kids," says Kace Medeiros, a tax manager with the firm.
More companies interested in helping kids are sought by the Education Collaborative of Washoe County Inc., a nonprofit that develops partnerships between schools and businesses.
The partnerships range from financial sponsorship to providing volunteers to donating unneeded merchandise that might be useful for classroom teachers.
"It's not a cookie-cutter thing.
It's whatever works for each school and each business," says Debbie DeLauer, partnership coordinator for the Education Collaborative.
About 190 businesses in the area help sponsor a school, and some schools have multiple corporate sponsors.
Even so, DeLauer says, a half dozen schools are without any sponsors at all, and the collaborative wants to fix that.
Businesses often choose a school that's close to their office this allows employees to volunteer conveniently or one in which employees have children.
Volunteer service ranges from scheduled time helping teachers in the classroom to work as chaperones on field trips in classrooms where parents can't get away from work for a few hours, DeLauer says.
Donations to schools cover a wide range.
G&G Nursery has provided plants for science projects at Moss School.
Port of Subs has provided sandwiches for students of the month at Sierra Vista School.
RR Donnelley provided a training room for teachers at Stead Elementary.
Employees of Centex Homes constructed a large mirror on wheels used by dance classes at Billinghurst Middle School.
Equally important, DeLauer says, is "From Crayons to Computers," an effort to put surplus business merchandise to use in classrooms.
One recent afternoon, donated items awaiting teachers' use included cloth napkins from a casino flags, anybody? as well as binders, file cabinets and office furniture, paper products and computers.
Teachers who visit the Crayons to Computers warehouse on Edison Way don't need to dig into their own pockets or scarce school district funds for supplies, DeLauer says.
"It's a really easy, fun thing to do," she says, noting that recent donations have totaled about $1 million annually.
Because the Education Collaborative is a nonprofit corporation, donations are tax-deductible, and the collaborative will arrange pickup.
(If you wonder if your surplus merchandise is useful, call the collaborative at 353-5533.) Denise Hedrick, executive director of the Education Collaborative, says the nonprofit also is looking for business people who want to ensure that students learn skills useful in the workforce.
The collaborative sponsors schoolto- career activities such as job fairs and field trips to job sites.
That effort extends to the group's advocacy committee, which works with legislators and state agencies to ensure that the educational system meets the needs of students who enter the workforce.
