RRCC Staff Report
Three groups of Upward Bound students visited Borderland via Rainy River Community College through June.
RRCC hosted 150 high school students who toured the college campus and visited Voyageurs National Park.
“The goal for these events was to get students on campus, learn about RRCC and have a good time,” said Lucy Nevanen, science and math Education recruiter, who organized the event. “Once students get here and see our college and community, they really start to consider RRCC for their post-secondary education.”
The three groups were from Itasca Community College, Hibbing Community College, and Mesabi Range Community and Technical College. The kids participated in campus tours, hands-on science experiments, biodiversity scavenger hunts, and boat rides on Rainy Lake.
“The kids were very interactive, and had a fun time,” said Molly Franz, recruiter. “Our community is a great place to start your education, but experiencing what it has to offer really adds so much more, and these kids were able to do that.”
Many of the students had never been to International Falls or Rainy Lake.
“My favorite part was the pontoon boat ride,” said Elissa Jo Kinney, a student from the Mesabi Upward Bound Program. “We saw a nesting loon, a blue heron, and four bald eagles.”
“We had a wonderful time at RRCC,” said Tallie Sertich, Director of Hibbing Community College Upward Bound. “Your staff was so welcoming and helpful. The students enjoyed the college tour and loved visiting Voyageurs National park. Because of the great hosts and fun activities planned by RRCC staff, this visit was well worth the drive to International Falls.”
“We couldn’t have done this without the help of Tawnya Schoewe and her staff out at Voyageurs National Park,” said Nevanen. “They were so helpful and really great with the students.”
The staff at RRCC will be hosting one more group of Upward Bound students at the end of July, bringing the grand total of students from these summer events to almost 200. “From a recruiting standpoint, getting this many students on campus is awesome,” said Nevanen.
Upward Bound is a federally funded college preparatory grant program that aims to prepare high school students from the region for high school and college success. The program serves students whose families fall under federal income guidelines and/or whose parents do not have a Bachelor’s degree.
Rainy River Community College is a member of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities. The MnSCU system comprises 31 state universities and community and technical colleges serving the higher education needs of Minnesota and serves more than 420,000 students across the state.
