This month, many Inland Empire students are heading back to school, embarking on a new year that will lead them one step closer to their future plans, even if they aren’t quite sure what those are. But that’s okay. Education isn’t a one-shot stop. In the words of Greek philosopher Socrates, “Education is the kindling of a flame, not the filling of a vessel.” Fortunately, at each stage of the learning process, the Inland Empire offers many options for helping even the youngest learners discover the passion for knowledge. For the youngest students, many public school districts offer transitional kindergarten, or TK, as it’s called. It’s available to four-year-olds and helps prepare them for kindergarten.
See TKCalifornia.org for more information, or contact your local school district. In the alternative, some preschools and day care centers offer academic curriculum that also helps prepare early learners for grade school. On August 6, Discover Isle Preschool in Temecula and Murrieta hosts an open house. See DiscoveryIsle.com or call 1-877-959-3741 to reserve a space. And, many private schools, like Alta Loma Christian School in Rancho Cucamonga, serve preschool students as well as older ones. To help you find licensed preschools, as well as day care, the Riverside County Office of Education has a child care resource and referral program. Access it at rcoe.us and follow the link to Early Learning Resources. In San Bernardino County, go to hs.sbcounty. gov/psd/Pages/Links.aspx and follow the links.
For those interested in private schools, the Inland Empire has many choices, from secular to religion-based. The Diocese of San Bernardino (sbdiocese.org) has links to Catholic schools in the region. Other faith-based schools in the region include Woodcrest Christian High School (wcss.org) in Riverside, Redlands Adventist Academy in Redlands (redlandsacademy.org), Ontario Christian Schools (ocschools.org), and the Linfield Christian School (linfield.com) in Temecula, among others. The Carden Arbor View School (cardenarborview.com) in Upland offers non-sectarian education from kindergarten through eighth grade. If you think your school-age child might need some extra help, tutoring centers are available, like My Learning Studio (mylearningstudio.com) in Riverside, Kuman Math and Reading Center (kumon.com) in Fontana, and the Sylvan Learning Centers (sylvanlearning.com). Check the websites for details. The Tech STEAM Center (techsteamcenter.com) in Riverside has after-school programs, workshops and camps for kids interested in 2D and 3D video game development, coding, web design, electronics, robotics and more. While the youngest students will be honing their reading skills and navigating the lunch line, high schoolers are faced with different challenges as they tackle the eternal question: what do I want to be now that I’m almost grown up?
Since first career choices don’t always work out, it’s a good thing that second—or maybe even third or fourth—choices can be explored. If you’re in that group, you’re in luck. The Inland Empire has several trade schools, community colleges and universities that offer a wide range of options, so going back to school isn’t just a kid thing. In Riverside County, the Riverside Community College District (rccd.edu) includes Moreno Valley College, Norco College and Riverside City College. In addition to preparing students to transfer to four-year-universities to complete their bachelor degree programs, RCCD also offers several certificate programs that help students get started in career fields. At Moreno Valley College (mvc.edu), students can earn certificates in emergency medical services, web design and development, information technology, and cybersecurity, among others.
Also, the Ben Clark Public Safety Training Center (BCTC), located 11 miles from the main Moreno Valley College campus, is one of the largest public safety education centers in Southern California. BCTC is a partnership between MVC, Riverside County Sheriff ’s Department, California Department of Forestry & Fire Protection, Riverside County Fire Department, California Highway Patrol, and Riverside County Probation Department. Students who enroll in public safety and law enforcement classes take many of their classes and do their training here. Norco College (norcocollege.edu) prepares students for a wide range of degrees, but also offers career/technical programs in game development, entrepreneurship, pre-engineering, industrial automation, supply chain automation, music industry studies, and logistics management.
Riverside City College (rcc.edu) also offers a full range of academic paths, as well as certificate programs in automotive technology, early childhood education, computer information systems, cosmetology, international business, and nursing, to name a few. In the southern part of Riverside County, Mt. San Jacinto College (msjc.edu) serves a 1,700-square-mile area from the San Gorgonio Pass to Temecula. It offers academic, vocational and technical programs. Certificate programs include accounting, commercial pilot, real estate, teaching, and water technology. Founded in 1926, the San Bernardino Community College District (sbccd.edu) is the home of Crafton Hills College, San Bernardino Valley College and Empire KVCR 91.9 FM and TV Channel 24. In addition to academic degree programs, San Bernardino Valley College (valleycollege.edu) offers certificates in a wide range of diverse careers from accounting to wastewater technology. Crafton Hills College (craftonhills.edu) also offers academic degree programs, as well as certificates in American sign language, business administration, emergency medical services, fire technology, and radiologic technology, to name a few.
Chaffey College in Rancho Cucamonga also has several academic degree programs, but also features a Workforce Training and Development Program that encompasses several fields. While some students opt for community college and career and technical training, others go directly to universities, such as UC Riverside, Cal State San Bernardino, Loma Linda University, the University of Redlands, Cal Poly Pomona, California Baptist University, La Sierra University, the Claremont Colleges, and the University of La Verne. For those interested in medicine, the Inland Empire has several options: UC Riverside School of Medicine, Loma Linda University School of Medicine, California University of Science and Medicine School of Medicine, and Western University of Health Sciences. Also, most universities and some colleges offer classes through their extension programs to members of the public. As Socrates implied, education is a lifelong learning experience. In the Inland Empire, there are many options that will prepare you for the future.
