Tara Bricker has been the director of the Belle Sherman After School program since 1992. With over 30 years thirty years of experience working with children in the Belle Sherman After School Program, she has extensive knowledge of the community, the elementary school campus, and the staffing needs of the program.

Tara grew up in the Ithaca area and played ice hockey starting at the age of four. She was a student-athlete at Cornell University, where she played on the varsity women’s ice hockey team and graduated with a degree in Human Development. Tara directed the Minnamurra after school program while studying abroad as an undergraduate in New South Wales, Australia.

Tara continues to enjoy ice hockey both as a player and official in the local community. During the summer Tara packs up her horses, dogs, and cats and heads to Black River Farm and Ranch, an overnight horse camp serving up to 132 girls at a time. She has worked at Black River Farm and Ranch since the age of 16 and is now the Equine Program Manager overseeing about 80 horses each summer. Tara also enjoys training and competing with her horses in western dressage, competitive trail ride, and endurance races.

“I love my job. We have some of the best kids in town. They are good to each other and love to play. Belle Sherman is a great school to work in. The staff is dedicated to helping kids figure out how to be good curious citizens. When they get to after school we just have to maintain the expectations of their school staff.”