SRT easement partner River Ridge hosts 'Taste of College' event
(SPRINGVILLE, CA) - Tulare is California's seventh largest county, yet it has no four-year college.
So, how do high schoolers get an idea of what higher education is about?
SRT easement partner River Ridge Ranch and River Ridge Institute already hosts college classes; now it is bringing local high school students out simultaneously so they can get their feet wet and 'take' a college class, meet college students, and discover what it's like to interact with faculty.
"We work with high school students who might never have thought of going on with their education; we open closed doors," says ranch and institute owner Gary Adest of Springville, who runs the organization with partner Barbara Brydolf.
River Ridge works with California State University, Long Beach and UC Merced, Porterville Unified School District, and the Tulare County Office of Education, plus many local non-profit organizations such as California Native Plant Society, Audubon, Sequoia Riverlands Trust, Latino Outdoors, the Tule River Tribe, UC Cooperative Extension, US Fish and Wildlife Service, etc.
Fundraising is under way to increase River Ridge's capacity to house students and faculty on the ranch so the ranch can support local youth by providing more visits to college classes. A gofundme is set up to support the campaign.
