In 1883, rural communities like Tarkio provided everything that their citizens needed to provide for their families and to prosper. What wasn't grown at home could be found at the local grocery. Dry goods were available at any number of local merchandisers. The local doctor made regular visits to homes to make sure that residents were receiving necessary health care. Public school buildings were central to the towns, country schools were scattered across the rural landscape, and the local church was the center of social activity. Travel was by horses and trains.
It was in this environment that Tarkio College was established in 1883 to provide a well-rounded "higher" education designed to give young adults an exposure to the fine arts, classical literature, and a sound foundation in Christian teaching. In essence, to bring the world to the rural regions. For those early students, this exposure opened a whole new experience and forever impacted their lives.
Today, we face a new challenge. Transportation no longer restricts us to our local community and commerce becomes increasingly centralized around our large population areas and can be accessed from our personal computers. Yet the comfort and safety of rural living remains a draw to many of our young people. It is no longer a need for transportation that holds us to our community, but rather a life-style choice. Technology floods our life with modern conveniences that have become necessities rather than luxuries, demanding a workforce with the skills to maintain these at a moment's notice.
The need to fill this workforce now drives our rural and urban economies. Tarkio College stands in a position to provide this training through Tarkio Technology Institute, offering our young adults an opportunity to develop a lifetime skill in an environment that can respond to a changing world with the values that have served humanity for over two thousand years. Tarkio College can continue to be the life-changing experience that it has been since 1883.
Tarkio College was founded to offer opportunities to young people through an experience that gave them a strong foundation in general knowledge, skills that prepared them for their professional careers, and values that would guide them through their life experiences. Those same needs exist today and Tarkio College is well-positioned at the leading edge of an evolving post-secondary world to continue to provide life-changing programs through the "Tarkio Experience."