SACATON, AZ & LOS ANGELES, CA — August 2, 2019 — Gila River Hotels & Casinos, which owns and operates three Arizona-based hotels and casinos, and the Gila River Indian Community have selected InStride as their exclusive learning services partner. All eligible Gila River Hotels & Casinos employees and community members will now be able to pursue over 200 advanced online degrees at high quality universities, such as Arizona State University, through InStride.

“In a rapidly changing industry such as ours, professional development is imperative. We’re constantly seeking innovative ways to build a well-educated team, and this strategic partnership with ASU and InStride will help us achieve this goal,” said Kenneth Manuel, CEO of Gila River Hotels & Casinos. “Not only will this scholarship help us with recruiting efforts, we anticipate a better retention rate among existing employees. Earning a college degree is life changing not only for the individual, but for our organization as well,” he said.

Gila River Hotels & Casinos is a community-focused company that takes pride in providing Gila River Indian Community tribal members and Arizona residents with employment opportunities by operating Wild Horse Pass and Lone Butte located in Chandler, and Vee Quiva located in Laveen. Aside from creating jobs, Gila River Hotels & Casinos also strives to generate income for and participate in the economic growth of the Gila River Indian Community.

Governor Stephen R. Lewis of the Gila River Indian Community stated, “Our Community continues to have a strong partnership with Arizona State University, a highly acclaimed institution of higher learning. This partnership has been enhanced by the selection of InStride as our learning services partner. This new partnership will provide enormous benefits for our Community members and our casino/hotel workforce in their pursuit of higher education. Education is the gateway to personal advancement and professional development which is a mutual benefit for our Community and its workforce.”

“We are incredibly proud to have the Gila River Indian Community, as well as a prominent Arizona tourist destination like Gila River Hotels & Casinos join our movement,” said Vivek Sharma, CEO of InStride. “We look forward to working with Governor Lewis, Mr. Manuel and their leadership teams to provide employees and community members the ability to pursue the life-changing opportunities that come with achieving advanced degrees from high-quality universities.”

Leading organizations recognize the development of their people is a significant priority for growth and competitiveness. In today’s global marketplace, the social and economic benefits of higher education are well-documented and include higher earnings and increased social mobility, greater civic participation and stronger health-related outcomes. InStride continues to develop partnerships with leading public and private organizations in order to connect them with a growing network of the highest-quality institutions around the world.

About InStride

InStride is a global learning services enterprise reinventing the education of today’s workforce, by working with employers to provide opportunities to degrees and credentials for their employees and partners, through the highest-quality universities and colleges. Founded as a collaboration between Arizona State University (ASU), U.S. News and World Report’s most innovative university, and The Rise Fund, a global impact investing fund managed by TPG, InStride is a public-benefit corporation that aims to become the indispensable human capital partner of organizations, helping them unlock the full potential of the university ecosystem and provide meaningful, life-changing impacts for their employees.

About Gila River Gaming Enterprises, Inc.
Gila River Hotels & Casinos operates three Arizona casinos owned by the Gila River Indian Community: Wild Horse Pass, Lone Butte, and Vee Quiva. All three casinos offer a combination of slots, table games, bingo, poker and more, and are open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Additional information on these and other events is available at 1-800-946-4452 or at PlayAtGila.com.

About Gila River Indian Community

Gila River Indian Community located on 372,000 acres in south-central Arizona and home to the indigenous O’otham (Pima) and Pee Posh (Maricopa) people. The Tribe is comprised of seven districts, the administrative offices and departments are located in Sacaton, and serve the people throughout these seven community districts. 100% of its profits from gaming and 17 other Enterprises are utilized by the community providing services and opportunities to achieve the highest quality of life. For more information, please visit http://www.gilariver.org/