Sierra Pacific Power Company
Contact: Ian Hill; Bob Sagan
Phone: (775) 750-5421 ; (775) 834-4834

For Immediate Release

A new recreation facility for disadvantaged children is being dedicated Thursday, March 15, in southeast Reno. The Sibayan Recreation and Youth Center, which is part of the Project Solution Community Complex, boasts a recently renovated, two-court gymnasium and theatrical stage, and also will feature a 2,000-sq.-ft. youth center, for which ground will be broken in April.

A collaborative effort between Project Solution and the City of Reno, the facility is being dedicated Thursday evening with a 20-minute, co-ed basketball game featuring community leaders from the Truckee Meadows. The Center is named for Fred and Sherry Sibayan of Sibayan and Associates in Reno, who provided $240,000 in funding. The Sierra Pacific Foundation, charitable arm for Sierra Pacific Power Co., also donated to the project.

"There is a battle being waged on a daily basis in our community," said Ian Hill, Project Solution founder and chairman of the board."This battle is for the full potential of each and every child and family in the Truckee Meadows. The enemies of our youth and their families are drugs, gangs, alcohol, abuse, neglect, poverty and ignorance. These enemies will not be defeated by slogans or worn-out dogma. A group of citizens committed to improving our community has offered up a new solutionÂ- Project Solution."

The Project Solution Community Complex, 1090 Bresson Ave. in Reno, also will house the Bailey Charter Elementary School and a yet-to-be-named Adult Education Center.

• Bailey Charter Elementary SchoolÂ- The charter school is named after Chase and Susan Bailey, major contributors to the project. This school is scheduled to open in August, and will be the first of its kind in Nevada. It will serve children who do not have a permanent address, and who are economically disadvantaged or academicallychallenged. The school will emphasize technology in addition to the basics, with each of the 200 students having a desktop computer for on-line learning programs. It will feature small class sizes (15:1 student/teacher ratio), an extended school day/school year, and an individualized curriculum foreach student. The charter school is scheduled for dedication July 31.

• Adult Education CenterÂ- Yet to be named, the Adult Education Center will work to enhance the lives of the parents of the charter school students, as well as those lives of other adults in the surrounding community. The program will offer job skills, life skills and parenting skills to assist adults in reaching their full potential. The Center will provide courses in areas such as technology and literacy, and programs ranging from sell-esteem development to financial planning.

A major portion of the Project Solution Community Complex is being financed with $1.2 million in loans from Northern Nevada Bank; First Independent Bank of Nevada; and Heritage Bank of Nevada.