OCWS funds scholarships for eight California colleges and universities including Napa Valley College. Napa Valley College has two locations, one in Napa and a second upper campus in St. Helena. As a community college, they offer the standard two-year associates degree and a one-year wine production certificate. Their Viticulture and Winery Technology (VWT) program is one of the largest in the country with an annual enrollment of 800 to 1,000 students, a five-acre vineyard and a commercial winery.

The certificates in viticulture and winery technology consist of production-oriented courses in viticulture and winemaking. Many of the students at Napa Valley actively work in the wine industry while taking classes. This month students in the wine program are getting ready to bottle their 2023 Sauvignon Blanc. All the wine produced is made from grapes grown on their five-acre vineyard located on the Napa Valley College campus. They produce between 500 and 700 cases annually. You can even join their wine club featuring student-made wines.

Next month we will be highlighting another one of the colleges/universities supported by the OCWS scholarship fund. Just a friendly reminder there is always time to donate to the OCWS Scholarship Fund for 2024.  There are two ways to donate:

1. Mail a check – Make your check out to OCWS and mail it to the OCWS office at OCWS O. Box 11059  Costa Mesa, CA 92627  Attn: Scholarship Fund  A donation letter will be sent to you.
2. Donate Online – Logon to your account at ocws.org and go to the scholarship donation page: ocws.org/product/scholarship-donations/

You can make your donation online and print a receipt for tax purposes at the same time.

—Damian Christian, Scholarship Chair