Up Next Nevada Launch

On November 17, 2025, the Nevada Alliance of Boys & Girls Clubs announced an innovative workforce development partnership with the Nevada Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation (DETR) and Nevadaworks to support its statewide expansion of early learning centers and afterschool programs. The partnership engages Gen Z workers, young adults ages 18 to 24 years old, in employment activities supporting licensed childcare, afterschool enrichment programs and youth recreation. The initiative, Up Next Nevada, ensures quality, consistent staffing in Boys & Girls Clubs facilities, while empowering a young workforce to find long-term career pathways in the Silver State. The program also helps address the childcare crisis in Nevada by providing more trained caregivers to address the needs of Nevada’s working families.

DETR’s initial Up Next Nevada investment of $6.5 million supports 160 full-time Boys & Girls Clubs’ young adult employees with a $2 per hour wage increase, college or trade tuition reimbursement of up to $6,500 per year, and one-on-one career coaching with a professional mentor. Up Next Nevada initiative participants gain a deeper knowledge of career expectations and opportunities in fields of academia, healthcare and energy, all identified as state priorities by AB428 (2023) The initiative also supports work readiness training and the hire of 50 teens, ages 15 to 18 years old, for seasonal work at Clubhouses. Nevadaworks, based in Reno, is providing technical support throughout the project’s statewide implementation.

“By 2030, Gen Z will make up more than a quarter of the U.S. workforce. Employers, like Boys & Girls Clubs, who invest early in Gen Z talent will gain a competitive edge in building loyal and skilled teams. We are excited Boys & Girls Clubs are poised to provide the career coaching and support young adults need to be successful,” remarked DETR Director Christopher Sewell.

Up Next Nevada empowers staff to dream, plan and grow into a best-fit career in education, healthcare or energy. Up Next Nevada is a first step toward a meaningful career, as described in the initiative’s launch video here. Below is a highlight video of our media outreach event, featuring Up Next Nevada participants

  • Laszlo Demick, Aquatics Director at Boys & Girls Clubs of Northeastern Nevada
  • Kaitlin Nichols, Pinecrest School Site Coordinator at Boys & Girls Clubs of Truckee Meadows
  • Faith Reid, Program Administrator at Boys & Girls Clubs of Western Nevada
  • Lukas Forzani, Program Lead at Boys & Girls Clubs of Western Nevada

2025 Day at the Capitol

The Nevada Alliance, in collaboration with Argentum Partners LLC, hosted its first Day at the Capitol in Carson City on February 25, 2025. Five Boys & Girls Club organizations were represented by their Chief Executive Officers and board members. Sixteen advocates met with 31 lawmakers in one power-meeting day! Advocates shared news of Club impact and program efforts in early learning and literacy, youth and teen mental health wellness, and work readiness partnerships.

Early Learning Center Expansion

The Nevada Alliance of Boys & Girls Clubs is honored to announce bipartisan approval of a statewide initiative to expand early learning centers and child care access for Nevada families. Governor Joe Lombardo proposed the initiative in partnership with Boys & Girls Clubs in order to expedite new child care seat availability statewide. On Thursday, April 11, 2024, the legislature’s Interim Finance Committee approved a $16.7 American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) investment for the effort. The initiative funds 14 projects statewide, involving the collaboration of seven independent Boys & Girls Clubs organizations and their respective board of directors and community partners.

“The funding will double the number of Boys & Girls Clubs early learning centers and provide an additional 1,000 children with quality day care, mental health enrichment and Kindergarten-readiness activities. This is exactly what ARPA was created for – post-pandemic economic recovery projects to support hard working families,” stated Andy Bischel, Chief Executive Officer of Boys & Girls Clubs of Southern Nevada based in Las Vegas.

The locations of the new centers were selected in areas of emerging industrial development, surging populations and/or few child care options; the funding will support Boys & Girls Clubs’ capital projects in Carson City, Dayton, Elko, Ely, Eureka, Incline Village, Las Vegas, Laughlin, Minden, Reno, Spring Creek and Winnemucca.

Mike Wurm, Chief Executive Officer of Boys & Girls Clubs of Truckee Meadows based in Reno shared, “ARPA funding will provide the critical capital needed to bring these projects to fruition quickly. The projects are shovel-ready and many are highly anticipated by employees in mining, trades, charter schools and local government. It’s a game-changing economic driver for working parents.”

In accepting the federal funding, Boys & Girls Clubs will obligate all funding via purchase, lease and construction agreements by the end of 2024 and expend the appropriation by December 31, 2026. Eight of the 14 projects are expected to be finished and providing services to families on or before December 31, 2024. The remaining six projects are due for completion in early 2026.

2025 Nevada Youth of the Year

On March 14, 2025, the Boys and Girls Clubs of Nevada Alliance sponsored the 2025 Nevada Youth of the Year event at the Governor’s Mansion in Carson City, Nevada. Attendees had the pleasure of listening to U.S. Congressman Amodei express his delight with their accomplishments and gave each of them advice for their personal journeys. The Youth of the Year program is Boys & Girls Clubs of America’s teen recognition initiative. Each year, Boys & Girls Club members across the country participate in local, state and regional events, concluding with the selection of the National Youth of the Year.

There were seven outstanding candidates from throughout the state of Nevada. Over the course of three days in Carson City, the students followed a rigorous schedule that included the competition, time with Nevada Governor Joe Lombardo, meeting with lawmakers and a legislative history scavenger hunt. After a very intensive competition, the judges awarded the 2025 Nevada Youth of the Year title to Britany Gutierrez of Boys & Girls Clubs of Southern Nevada and the Military Youth of the Year to Joseph Ampong of the Nellis Air Force Base Boys & Girls Clubs. These two amazing teens will move on to the Pacific Regional Youth of the Year competition to represent the Silver State against other teen competitors from neighboring states.

We would like to give a special acknowledgement to the runners up, Ava C. from Boys and Girls Club of Western Nevada, Angelina J. from Boys and Girls Club of Northeastern Nevada, Tianna B. with Boys and Girls Club of Truckee Meadows, Robert G. from Boys and Girls Club of Mason Valley and Gavin W. with Boys and Girls Club of Fallon Airforce Base. Many thanks to our supporters Kohl’s Cares and Swire Coca-Cola, and competition judges First Lady Donna Lombardo, State Treasurer Zach Conine, UFCU Regional Vice President Meredith Williams, WNC Chief Advancement Officer Niki Gladys and Swire Field Administration Manager Amee Taul. We are excited and look forward to our 2026 Youth of the Year celebration in Las Vegas!

Fund for Resilient Nevada Youth Program Award

Boys & Girls Clubs is committed to expanding high-quality health promotion programming throughout Nevada. As the opioid epidemic becomes pervasive in the Nevada communities that Clubs operate, youth increasingly become victims. The most vulnerable stages in a young person’s life are the academic transitions from elementary to middle school and middle to high school. During these times, substance misuse among youth increases the risk of academic under-achievement, delinquency, teenage pregnancy, and depression. Focusing on the highly-impressionable ages of 10 to 15 years old, Clubs deliver health promotion programming, empowering youth to build skills to address real-world problems in a manner that is holistic, youth-led, adult-facilitated, project-based and active.

In February 2024, Boys & Girls Clubs entered into a multi-year partnership with the Fund for Resilient Nevada to deploy a statewide opioid abatement and prevention program. Boys & Girls Clubs opioid prevention initiative has three goals 1) increase the knowledge, coping and resiliency skills among 2,971 youth ages 10 to 15 years old in 34 communities through the implementation of the SMART Moves curricula; 2) prepare 75 program staff as responders to opioid interventions and referrals; and 3) reach 320 families with important opioid-intervention and prevention resources.

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