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GEAR UP State Director
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GEAR UP State Director
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Nate Mackinnon
NSHE Vice Chancellor for Community Colleges
Email: nmackinnon@nshe.nevada.edu
Hometown: Chelmsford, MA
Nate Mackinnon
Nate Mackinnon
NSHE Vice Chancellor for Community Colleges
Bio: Nate Mackinnon joined NSHE in July 2017 as the vice chancellor for community colleges. In this role, he works closely with the chancellor, Board of Regents, and college presidents to provide leadership, coordination, and advocacy for the System’s four community colleges.
Prior to his employment with NSHE, Mackinnon served eight years as assistant commissioner and chief of staff for the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education. He previously held positions as research director for the Joint Committee on Education for the Massachusetts State Legislature and research coordinator/education specialist/department spokesperson for the Office of the Commissioner in the Massachusetts Department of Education.
Mackinnon graduated Magna Cum Laude from Northeastern University in Boston with a Bachelor of Science in Political Science and received his Master in Public Administration from Harvard University. He was the 2014 recipient of the Lucius N. Littauer Award from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government and was the Governor Robert F. Bradford Fellow for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts at Harvard University in 2013-2014.
Karen Pugh
Karen Pugh
Internal Evaluator
Hometown: Redding, CA
Bio: Karen has a passion for learning that began at an early age; she was 4 when her mother taught her to read. Her first degree, a Bachelor of Fine Arts, was from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts in Film and Television which was quickly followed by a Master’s in Business Administration from the University of Nevada, Reno. Both of those degrees served her well as the director of contracts for an international film production and distribution company in Southern California. After the devasting events of 9/11, she knew that she had to focus her attention on something that provided greater meaning and substance for her, so she turned her passion for learning into a career as an educator. After obtaining her Master’s in Education from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, she moved to rural Arizona where she taught high school English in a very small district just 12 miles from the Mexican border. During that time, she completed her fourth degree, an Educational Specialist in Educational Leadership from George Washington University. Moving back to Nevada, in July 2011, Karen taught in both Churchill and Lyon Counties before returning to the University of Nevada, Reno to work on her Ph.D. in Information Technology in Education.
As a student, and an educator, Karen is aware of the opportunities and challenges students in our K-12 system experience. She knows that engaging students in the process of learning is itself the key to achieving success in academics and in life.
Before coming to GEAR UP in 2018, Karen worked as a graduate assistant in the Honors Program at UNR and then moved over to UNR Med to work as a learning specialist for the first- and second-year medical students. While there she was able to channel her love for rural Nevada into a year-long collaboration with the UNR Med faculty and students which resulted in the creation of the Rural Outreach Clinic, which held its first clinic on October 13, 2018.
Outside of her role as NDE Internal Evaluator, Karen is pursuing her Ph.D. at UNR, engaged in helping UNR Med bring quality healthcare to Nevada’s rural counties, and spending what free time she has with her family at her home in Silver Springs.
Favorite Quote: “Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire.” ― William Butler Yeats
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GEAR UP Research Administrator
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GEAR UP Research Administrator
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Lori Botelho
Lori Botelho
Interim Director
Hometown: Minden, NV
Bio: Lori Botelho is the Assistant Director for Nevada GEAR UP. She comes to the program from Bishop, California, where she was Program Manager for Cerro Coso Community College and the Kern Community College District for fifteen years. She was part of a team that created and implemented the online educational program for Cerro Coso Community College. Lori began her work with Nevada GEAR UP as a Grants Analyst in November of 2011 and has held her current position as Assistant Director since 2013. She lives in Minden, Nevada, with her husband and has three grown children. Lori enjoys traveling, camping, and exploring Nevada.
Favorite Quote: “Don’t aim for success if you want it; just do what you love and believe in and it will come naturally.” – David Camus
Janet Stake
Janet Stake
Director of Programming and Outreach
Hometown: Towaco, NJ
Bio: Janet has twelve years’ experience in higher education. She started at UNR as the Curriculum Coordinator and then moved to NSHE as the Academic and Student Affairs Officer. One of her responsibilities in that role was as the NSHE PI/Project Director for Nevada State GEAR UP Grant from 2015 – 2018. Janet is excited to be back with Nevada GEAR UP as the Director, NSHE GEAR UP Programming and Outreach. Janet has a master’s degree in counseling and educational psychology/instructional design. She and her husband live in Sparks, NV. She has two grown children that now live in Minneapolis, MN. In her spare time, she likes painting, photography and traveling to Minnesota.
Janet is looking forward to working with the GEAR UP team and helping Nevada’s GEAR UP students to Dream ~ Believe ~ Achieve.
Favorite Quote: “The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams” -Elanor Roosevelt
Jana Burd
GEAR UP College Coordinator
Email: jburd@nshe.nevada.edu
Hometown: Anchorage, AK
Jana Burd
Jana Burd
GEAR UP College Coordinator
Hometown: Anchorage, AK
Bio: With strong family roots in Louisiana, Jana grew up in the west, having lived in Alaska, Nevada, California, and Arizona. Jana graduated with her Bachelors of Arts from the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR) and her Masters of Education from Northern Arizona University (NAU), where much of her studies focused around language, culture, and inclusion. Jana’s engagement with equity and access began while in high school as a University of Nevada, Las Vegas Upward Bound Math Science (UBMS) Program participant, and continued as she worked with the UBMS programs at UNR and NAU. In her free time, Jana enjoys watching movies & TV shows, catching up with friends & family, and being active in her favorite service organization.
Favorite Quote: “When you’ve worked hard, and done well, and walked through that doorway of opportunity, you do not slam it shut behind you.” ― Michelle Obama
Megan Zich
Megan Zich
GEAR UP State Program Officer
Hometown: Carson City, NV
Bio:Megan began her work with Nevada GEAR UP as an Administrative Assistant in October of 2018 and is working her way to the Program Officer position. She spends many of her days researching, developing, and recommending long term plans to enhance and maximize GEAR UP services provided to students. In addition, Ms. Zich leads the project for the Student Success Agency, a statewide mentoring program that is offered to all Nevada GEAR UP students. Megan has become an asset to the GEAR UP team, at the Department of Education, as they work vigorously to plan, draft, and carry out the Next GEAR UP Grant.
Brooke Stutler
GEAR UP Communications Specialist
Email: bstutler@nshe.nevada.edu
Hometown: Sarasota, FL
Brooke Stutler
Brooke Stutler
Communications Specialist
Hometown: Sarasota, FL
Bio: Brooke Stutler is an Honors student at the University of Nevada, Reno, and is currently pursuing her Bachelor’s degree in Research Psychology. Originally from the suburban beach town of Sarasota, Florida, she has lived in Reno for the past two years and considers the city her home. Throughout her education, Brooke’s status as an Honors student as well as her interest in psychology has gifted her with a greater appreciation for higher education, as well as a profound understanding of how best to communicate and connect with others. As GEAR UP Communications Specialist, Brooke’s goal is to reach out to as many students as possible, both encouraging them and offering them the opportunity to further their education. In her free time, Brooke enjoys hiking, playing D&D, rock climbing, off-roading, and tutoring Psychology at UNR.
Favorite Quote: “We know what we are, but know not what we may be.” -William Shakespeare
