GRANDVIEW, Wash.- Yakima Valley College is bringing together students and families to get an inside look at where the students are studying.
The school’s first Yak Family Night invited students to bring their family onto campus for tours and to see what resources are available for students. YVC’s Grandview campus’s Dean Pedro Navarrete calls the event a student appreciation event.
“We recognize when students are making the decision to attend college, it’s a big feal especially for our student population,” says Navarrete. “Most of our students are first generation students so this is a big step not only for the, but for the family.”
Families were treated to lawn games, tacos and music while they toured the campus and visited with resources including financial aid experts and language assistance.
Navarrete says as much as the event is to appreciate the students, it’s also an opportunity to inspire family members that may be considering school.
“A lot of our families have never taken a step on a college campus,” says Navarrete. “Some of them have stopped and returned, so we’re dealing with a lot of different situations. It’s exposing what’s available here in the valley that’s really transformative of people’s lives.”
Students were excited to bring their parents onto campus to see what they do on a daily basis.
“They can mingle, network, anything they need because the community sometimes needs that,” says YVC Student Ambassador Alondra Serna-Negrete.
Serna-Negrete says her parents couldn’t make the event, but wishes they could help them adapt to their child being out on their own.
“They like to hold on to me and my siblings because they get kinda scared,” says the student ambassador. “I know if they saw my workplace, the people here, the general community and how people trust each other and work together, they would love it.”
YVC says this first event will carry to future years after the success and feedback from the first night of the event.
Yak Family Night will move to YVC’s Yakima Campus on May 16 from 4-7 p.m. for those students and families to share the experience.
