Santa Barbara City College (SBCC) College Fair Night recently welcomed some 600 families that connected local high school students with admission representatives from more than 70 post-secondary institutions, including in-state and out-of-state colleges as well as public and private universities.

The event is a collaborative effort between SBCC, Santa Barbara Unified School District, Carpinteria Unified School Disrict, UCSB, CSUCI and others.

“As a former Don, I love seeing SBCC collaborate with Santa Barbara High School and SB Unified to help promote opportunities and pathways for local students,” said Paloma Arnold, assistant superintendent/vice president, Student Services.

“We thank our community and partners and look forward to continuing this collaboration to provide this service to our community,” Arnold said.

SBCC and the collaboration also hosted two presentations: one for how to transfer from SBCC to a four-year institution, and how to apply directly into a four-year institution or University of California system.

Presenters were Wendy Peters, SBCC counselor; and Cuca Acosta, interim director, Office of Admission at UCSB.

CAL-SOAP and the Santa Barbara Scholarship Foundation provided additional presentations on the financial aid process. Each of the presentations had more than 50 people in attendance.

The event offered students a chance to engage in discussions about majors, course offerings, admission requirements, and college life while receiving information to guide their future educational paths.

“College creates opportunities by preparing students with the skills needed to thrive in the real world,” said SB Unified Superintendent Hilda Maldonado.

“Events like the College Fair Night are crucial, making the goal of attending a four-year university more accessible to all students, regardless of background or income,” she said. “I thank our partners for their commitment to equipping our students with the resources they need to get ahead.”