Every nine weeks, students at Mt. Charleston Elementary School look forward to special rewards for achieving passing grades. The ongoing program, called Reward Rendezvous, also encourages good behavior in the classroom, on the playground and while riding the school bus.

Many times over the past few years, the rewards have been field trips, but Nye County School Superintendent Rob Roberts said the $2.7 million in budget cuts since December forced the school district to eliminate field trips of all types.

In Pahrump, individuals and businesses are helping to fill the void.

"Reward Rendezvous are field trips for the older kids," explained Mt. Charleston's Principal Tim Wombaker. "We challenge the kids to make good choices in and out of the classroom to earn the rewards.

"The kids have to put out a strong effort in the classroom. If they get an 'F' in a subject, that shows no effort and they don't get to participate in the reward for that quarter."

There is a different reward for every grade level and student teams from each grade select rewards that will most motivate their classmates.

"The first-grade kids like movie parties in their classroom," said Wombaker. "But the older kids would rather go out.

"Debbie Brooks, owner of the Skate Zone, has welcomed our kids for years. She gives us free skating and laser tag. That's one of the most popular rewards the students request. The kids also like to bowl and the Pahrump Nugget has been generous by discounting games for us.

According to Wombaker, when the students hold fundraisers, like bake sales, all the proceeds go toward field trips. Parents and other individuals and businesses also donate.

In the past, students have been bused to Las Vegas for movies, but on Monday fifth graders who qualify for the quarterly reward are going to see "High School Musical 3" at the Saddle West Hotel and Casino.

"Saddle West worked with us on the price of the tickets for the kids, teachers and chaperones," said Wombaker. "The kids are excited."

The excitement extends to employees and even patrons of Saddle West. The casino's General Manager Jack Crane rescheduled next Monday's activities to accommodate the request from the school.

"Our regularly scheduled bingo games start at noon, in the same room we use for the movies," said Crane. "We had to adjust the bingo start time as well as our maintenance schedule to get the kids in here in time for them to be back at school to catch their buses. When I announced the change in the schedule to our regular bingo players and told them about the kids, everyone applauded."

"It normally takes an hour to convert the big showroom into theatre seating," Crane explained. "But Don Keller, our facilities and safety manager, said he and his crew will make it happen in just 45 minutes. He said to go for it.

"The kids will be seated at one o'clock and we've already forwarded the film past the previews. As soon as the kids are in their seats, the lights will dim and the movie will start ... bingo.

"This is big for us because it's very tight timing, but even our players are behind the idea. We've worked hard to schedule kid-friendly movies and make this the perfect environment for the youngsters. The community is going to see a lot more from Saddle West as far as community service goes," said Crane.

At Mt. Charleston Elementary, in addition to Reward Rendezvous, educational trips are scheduled for later in the school year.