Silver Dollars & Wooden Nickels: Silver to the best after school program in the U.S.

The Nevada Appeal's "Silver Dollar" and "Wooden Nickel" feature recognizes positive achievements from the capital region and, when warranted, points out others that missed the mark.

SILVER DOLLAR: "The Motel Life" is likely more than a year away from hitting the theaters, and well, we can't wait. We can't wait to the see landmarks we come to take for granted in our daily lives on the big screen. Polsky Films has been in Carson and Carson Valley shooting the big screen adaptation of the book of the same name, a yarn about two brothers who flee their Reno motel room after getting involved in a fatal hit-and-run accident.

WOODEN NICKEL: One month ago, in this same spot we said, "We hate to think about the toll $4 a gallon would take on our already battered economy." However, that $4 mark looks more and more like a soon-to-be reality. Two months ago, Carson City saw a 9-cent increase in gas prices from January to February; that was nothing compared to the 46-cent increase from February to March. Gas now sits at $3.69 a gallon with summer looming on the horizon.

SILVER DOLLAR: Another film crew also was in town to film a video to train other schools across the country in developing successful academic remediation and enrichment programs, like the Dolphin Club at Bordewich-Bray Elementary School. The club was named the best afterschool program of its kind in the country by the U.S. Department of Education. The program was nominated for the recognition by the Nevada State Department of Education and was selected from among 100 other applicants.

The Dolphin Club begins just after school at 3:15 p.m. and runs until 4:30 p.m. when students either go home or to the Boys & Girls Clubs of Western Nevada, which serves as a partner to the club.

"It's not just us, it's the teachers," said fourth-grader Alejandro Cabrera. "The teachers stay here to help us rather than going home. We have to thank the teachers."