University of Redlands
Rancho Cucamonga, California
Business and Psychology double major
When Nicole Sarpy ’17 heard that University of Redlands offers a May Term class that travels to Japan, it was her dream come true.
Sarpy grew up on Pokémon and other animé, and this triggered an interest in Japanese culture—both pop and traditional. She always wanted to visit Japan but didn’t think it was realistic. “I have always wanted to go abroad and have dreamed of going to Japan since I was a child,” she says.
Sarpy and her classmates in Bill Huntley’s Japanese Religions and Arts class went to the island country during May Term. They studied Japanese culture at Reitaku University and taught English at a nearby elementary school.
Sarpy, a Rancho Cucamonga native who is a double major in business and psychology, had wanted to go to University of Redlands since she was a teen. “I remember when I was a junior in high school and I was on a campus tour and I got this feeling that this was the right school,” she says.
As she grew older, she came to appreciate the small class sizes. “This was simply my dream college,” she says. “I knew that here I would find the close relationships with my professors that I wanted, along with a more intimate classroom and the opportunities for networking that naturally provides.”
The only obstacle was the cost, but she was happy to find the University offers numerous types of financial assistance. “I wouldn’t be at Redlands if I hadn’t gotten financial help,” she says. “I’d be going to college but probably community college or a Cal State.”
