Leadership

Erica Rojas
Erica RojasDirector, Belonging Cohorts
Cisco Lopez
Cisco LopezProgram Manager, First Ascent

Our Partners

“The very low graduation rate of students that come from challenging personal and socioeconomic backgrounds is a problem that needs to be actively addressed. There are young men and women in our community that have all the talent, drive and creativity to achieve success and make a difference in the world, yet are held back by lack of opportunity and support.

Our goal is to help our First Ascent Scholars throughout their four year college careers by providing financial support through scholarships and room and board. We believe surrounding these students with the tools they need to navigate the university environment is as important as the financial support we provide. he First Ascent program gives our students a sense of community through one-on-one mentoring, academic support, and international and domestic travel opportunities.  What we ask for in return is to support each other, give back to the community, and graduate.”

– Jeff and Helen Cardon

Mark Parker
Mark Parker
Shailaja Akkapeddi
Shailaja Akkapeddi
Katie Amundsen
Katie Amundsen
Victoria Cabal
Victoria Cabal
Helen Cardon
Helen Cardon
Jeff Cardon
Jeff Cardon
Jack Elizondo
Jack Elizondo
Eric Jara
Eric Jara
Natalie Lam
Natalie Lam
Doug Neville
Doug Neville
Jess Taverna
Jess Taverna

Thank you to our sponsors

The First Ascent Scholars Program would not be possible without the generous support of donors and program partners. With their support, we are able to provide scholarships and quality programming for our scholars. Thank you to the following partners for their commitment to the First Ascent Scholars Program mission.

Actium Partners LLC
Jeffrey and Heather Adams
Ruk Adams
Bryce Akagi
Chelsey Alberico
Katie and Scott Amundsen
Pamela Atkinson
Karey and Brian Barker
Kris Bosman
Horzie Founta Boulingui
Michael Brimley
Victoria Cabal
Benjamin Caine
Charlie Cardon
The Jeffrey and Helen Cardon Foundation
Hugh Chace
Paul Christenson
Byron Clah
Teresa Cloward
Brad Hardy and Jolie Coleman
Lisa Collins
Timothy Collins
Frank Corbett
Janice Corbin
Jerry and Gerry Coupe
Zachary Crum
Jennifer Cummings
Omar Dahir
Thomas and Candace Dee
Don Goschy and Vince DePisa
John and Mia DeWitt
David and Kim Dougherty
Jane Dower
Nauldine Dower
Alex Drake
Roger Edgley
David Eldredge
Jack and Melanie Elizondo
Lisa Espinosa
Juan Estrada
Aaron Fanello
John and Carol Firmage
Michael and Sharee Gallivan
Robert and Susanne Gardiner
Henry and Patrice Hemingway
Richard K. and Shirley S. Hemingway Foundation
Christopher Jackson
Roy Jespersen
Roger Johnson and Betty Karnesis
Brian Klein
Ajay Krishnan and Shailaja Akkapeddi
Natalie Lam
Tuoc Lam
Paul and Nichole Lambert
Andres Lancheros
Bruce and Gayle Larson
Mel and Wendy Lavitt
Jimmy Lee
Whitfield Lee
Rick and Lynnette Lucking
John Malooly
Management & Training Corporation
Dr. and Mrs. Mariani
Erica Marken
Robert Marquardt
Jane Mason
Michael McDonald
Ashley Maria Jimenez Mendoza
Mark Miller
Judith Moreton
Adam and Lindsay Nelson
Justin Nelson
Teresa Nelson
Doug and Donaree Neville
Nam Nguyen
Vicki and Mark Overfelt
Christina Palacios
Mark Parker and Holly Zullo
R. Kip and Terri Paul
Bruce Petersen
Jeff and Susan Polychronis
Spencer Randall
Mick Rasmussen
Daniel Rehbehnr
Abby Reise
Karla Rodriguez
Edwin Roman
Andrea Cazares Rosas
E. William Scott
Jeff Scott
Zachary Scott
Dean Hirabayashi and Rise Shiba
Ryan Snow
Jason Snyder
Nora Sotelo
Gerrit Steenblik
David and Laurea Stirling
Sam and Diane Stewart Family Foundation
Ramona Stromness
R. Anthony and Rachel Sweet
Catherine Swenson
Sonnie and Stephen Swindle
Jessica Taverna
Daniel Thurber
Mike Valentine
Daniel Velazquez
Wasatch Advisors Incorporated
Bill and Lisa Wirthlin
Heidi and Todd Woodbury
Heather Wybrow
Wendy Yu
W.B. Zachry