Giving

Community involvement started with Engineering

Sara Lafrance joined Engineering's advisory advisory board in 2002: it was her first board, but it wouldn't be her last

Sara Lafrance’s connection with the College of Engineering dates back to 2002, when she joined the College’s advisory board.

Lafrance, a University of Nevada, Reno English/journalism graduate, and her husband, Leonard, had moved to Incline Village from the San Francisco Bay Area after selling their software business in 1998.

They’d spent 22 years growing Century Analysis, Inc., which provided application integration solutions to commercial, industrial and healthcare enterprises. They’d raised a daughter and, along the way, Sara Lafrance had earned a master’s degree in organizational development from Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, New York.

“When we sold the company, I felt we were very fortunate,” Lafrance said.

She knew she would continue to contribute to the community and would do so without compensation. But after decades in the tech industry, she wasn’t sure what would come next.

“You sit back and say, ‘now what am I going to do?’”

At the time, the Lafrances were involved in the Incline Village-based angel investment group Sierra Angels. When one of their fellow investors suggested that Sara get involved with the College, she joined the advisory board — her first time in that type of role — and has remained on the job ever since.

“I watched the College grow, and I watched it develop into something special,” Lafrance said.

When Lafrance joined the advisory board in 2002, Ted Batchman was dean, the College was smaller than it is today and its main building was Scrugham Engineering and Mines (SEM), a 1960s-era brick structure with clean, Mid-Century Modern features.

Civil Engineering Professor Manos Maragakis took over as dean in 2009 and Lafrance formed a close bond with him over his 14-year tenure. Among other support, she and her husband backed Maragakis’ efforts to establish a new Engineering building, resulting in the opening of the William N. Pennington Engineering Building (WPEB) in 2020. The building’s second floor laboratory bears the Lafrances’ name. The couple also sponsors a scholarship within the College.

“Sara and Leonard Lafrance have been very strong supporters of our College, and we are grateful for that constant support,” Interim Engineering Dean Indira Chatterjee said. “We are especially fortunate to have Sara on the board, helping us grow the College into a competitive educational and research institution.”

Forward focused

Sara Lafrance’s influence extends beyond the College of Engineering: she is the president of Educational Pathways International, a nonprofit organization she and her husband established in 2006 to offer university scholarships to Ghanian students with financial need. As the organization’s website states, the Lafrances have traveled extensively and have been affected their experiences.

When she’s not running the nonprofit, she serves on a number of advisory boards. In addition to Engineering, Lafrance is on the University of Nevada Foundation Board of Trustees; the Nevada Research and Innovation Corporation; and the advisory board for the University of Nevada National Science Foundation (NSF) Regional Innovations Engines program. She’s also the chair of the PBS Reno Board of Trustees.

But her dedication to Engineering remains strong and forward focused. Lafrance is mindful of the current national search for a new dean and is on the search committee. (Chatterjee is not seeking the position.) Lafrance noted that the College has enjoyed a solid national reputation in the past and would like to see that continue.

“I’m really optimistic,” she said.