Napa winery Domaine Carneros bolsters mentorship programs
Napa-based Domaine Carneros has announced a 2022 program of mentorship and a scholarship.
The program is an outgrowth of the its partnership Bâtonnage Forum, a nonprofit founded in 2018 by Stevie Stacionis and Sarah Bray, Bâtonnage and dedicated to “fostering a community for all those who identify as women working in the wine industry,” the winery stated. It added the partnership also resulted in a job placement program which began in January.
For more information about Bâtonnage Forum and the Mentorship Program, contact Katie Canfield at katie@odonnell-lane.com.
Beginning in March 2022, the winery stated the four-year commitment will award one scholarship each year to an individual whose application essay demonstrates a commitment to supporting diversity and sustainability in the wine industry.
In addition to the mentorship program, the winery is working closely with the University of California at Davis and The Culinary Institute of America, collaborating on scholarships and mentor programming to support aspiring students. The scholarships are called the Le Rêve “The Dream” Scholarship after the winery’s eponymous prestige cuvée. The UC Davis scholarship focuses on graduate enrollees in the Viticultural and Enology program. Students with a minimum GPA of 3.0, earning a graduate degree, and who are committed to promoting diversity and sustainability in the wine business, will be awarded scholarships. The winery has committed to a total of four Le Rêve scholarships at UCD over the next few years. The first will be awarded this fall, for more information on the program please contact Karen Block at klblock@ucdavis.edu
Domaine Carneros is also creating a Le Rêve Scholarship program for students in The Culinary Institute of America’s master’s degree program in wine and beverage management.
Black, Indigenous and people of color identified as “leaders or managers of nonprofit organizations based in or serving Napa County,” are eligible to receive scholarship through the Center for Volunteer & Nonprofit Leadership.
The nonprofit stated a grant from the Peter A. and Vernice H. Gasser Foundation is funding the program. Earlier this year, the center announced similar scholarship funding from the Marin Board of Supervisors Community Service Fund to support nonprofit leadership training in Marin County.
The $400 scholarship awards are available for the center’s cohort programs such as Management Essentials – Spring and Summer series for new managers or those seeking to improve team performance; Excellence in Leadership – 10 sessions starting in late March for executives or senior leaders of nonprofit organizations; and Leading for Equity and Inclusion – 5 sessions starting in April.
“Capacity building is so important for community-based organizations to enhance their impact,” Ines De Luna, the center’s manager of volunteer services in Napa County. “These scholarships are a great incentive to enable BIPOC nonprofit leaders and allies to make the institutional changes needed to create more inclusive organizations and enable more effective community engagement.”
Scholarships are available to center member organizations only. Learn more about each of these programs and other member benefits by visiting the the center’s website.
An inaugural “Winter Coat Drive” has been launched by the nonprofit trade group, Napa Valley Grapegrowers and the the Napa Valley Farmworker Foundation (FWF).
Throughout January, according to the organizations, Napa Valley grape growers, vineyard managers, and ag-based businesses donated warm clothing – coats, scarves, socks, and gloves. In total, 335 coats were donated for distribution through local community groups, like Puertas Abiertas, On the Move, and the Salvation Army.
“Whether it is a seminar on climate-smart vineyard practices with NVG or a summer mentor program for local high school students with the Farmworker Foundation – everything we do aims to support and strengthen the Napa Valley community for a brighter tomorrow,” stated Jennifer Putnam, executive director and CEO of the Napa Valley Grapegrowers and Napa Valley Farmworker Foundation.
