Marion Charity Receives $18,500 Check, Visit from Lt. Gov. Reynolds

Nancy Rinehart said she teaches fourth grade and after school STEM classes to witness learning take hold on a student.

“Just to see that look in their eyes; that total wow, that joy,” said the fourth grade teacher at Novak Elementary. “That excitement is very cool to see.”

She works with the Marion non-profit Marion Cares in their STEM program, which aims to teach science, technology, engineering and mathematics. The charitable organization received a $18,500 check from the local IBEW union and a visit from Iowa Lt. Gov. Kim Reynolds on Monday afternoon.

"That's where the great jobs are and that's where there’s a lot of progress in the future," said Reynolds. "This is a truly, truly good example of a successful program."

She spoke to a crowd of approximately 30 children, organizers and members of the media at the Azure Apartments in Marion, one of the few locations of Marion Cares’ after school programs.

The after school program helps at-risk students in third through fifth grade — primarily, but not limited to the Linn-Mar School District — develop skills in those areas.

Reynolds is the co-chair of the STEM Advisory Council, started by executive order 74 by Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad. 

The grant check was among the largest donation the organization as received, according to Joe Polzin, the director of Marion Cares.

He said the organization has seen growth in recent years as teachers in the Linn-Mar and Marion Independent school districts have refereed students to the program, growing from three students to 74 over three years.

Polzin said Linn-Mar School District Superintendent Katie Mulholland has expressed gratitude for the program’s ability to help kids from low-income backgrounds.

"She said if there was a need for kids in poverty in the area community members could pull together resources together to meet that need," he said.

But the program is more than helping kids in need of extra tutoring. Polzin said it’s about developing an interest in the sciences for the future of students and Iowa's economy.

"Our angle is really to help them see what they can be when they grow up," he said. "If see kids get into these science experiments or math, there’s a career there."