Situated in the center of California, Tulare, Fresno, Madera and Merced counties are top agricultural producers and the region, as a whole, is known as the leading producer of agricultural commodities in the United States. The K-12 school systems in Tulare, Fresno, Madera and Merced counties serve nearly 405,000 students. Despite the abundance of agriculture and food production, many of the local communities are high in poverty, and much of the area is rural and lacking essential services, such as high-speed internet. Though the poverty rate in California stands at 15.1%, with over 4 million children living in poverty, in the four counties the combined poverty rate is 20%. With such high rates of concentrated childhood poverty, Tulare, Fresno, Madera, and Merced County public schools are responsible for serving some of the state’s most vulnerable children. Nearly 77% of all public K-12 students in the four county region are identified as socio-economically disadvantaged, and in some districts the percentage of students qualifying for free or reduced-price meals is as high as 90%. 

Much like the sparse fiscal resources in the region, low educational attainment and achievement plagues the counties, contributing to ongoing cycles of poverty. According to California Health & Human Services, in the four county region, only about 16% of adults age 25 or older have attained a bachelor’s degree or higher. Contributing to this low figure is the fact that Tulare and Madera counties do not have a 4-year university within their county lines and satellite options are limited.  The lack of educational options coupled with the low rate of educational attainment compounds the  region’s financial challenges, with the lifetime earning potential for a college graduate far exceeding that of someone with only a high school diploma.

By improving math achievement, CVNIC: College-Ready teams hope to increase A-G rates, thus creating more postsecondary options for students and increasing their likelihood of postsecondary success, no matter what path they choose to pursue.