RajI  K. Brar​

Raji K. Brar Chief Operating Officer Countryside Corporation (West High Class of 1993)
Born and raised in the Central Valley, Brar is a first-generation Sikh American. Her parents immigrated to the United States from Punjab, India. She was born in Fresno County, where her parents started their life in the States working in the fields as farmworkers. Her family eventually made the move to Bakersfield, where she went to Actis Jr. High, Thompson Jr High, West High School and CSUB. 
At West High she played for the soccer team and was elected junior and senior Class Secretary. She was also a part of Mrs. Britain’s dance class all four years. She obtained her Bachelor of Science in Biology and Master of Science in Health Care Administration from CSU Bakersfield. After college, she worked as a chemist for BC Laboratories and at Clinica Sierra Vista as an executive assistant to then CEO Steve Schilling. 
Today, along with her family, she owns Countryside Corporation, which has a construction & real estate development division and operates various franchises (Subway, Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, Countryside Markets, Me-nEds Pizzeria, Countryside Car Wash, Shell Gas Stations) and Countryside Farms. They employ over 500 people throughout Kern and Tulare Counties and have been in business for over 30 years.
In the past Brar has had the privilege of being the first Sikh women ever elected to a city council seat in the State of California. In 2006, she was elected to the Arvin City Council. Due to this historic achievement, she was named “Women of the Year” by the California State Senate. Brar is a four-time gubernatorial appointee. Last year she was appointed by Governor Newsom as a trustee to the California State University and currently serves on the board of directors for the Cal Chamber, CSUB Foundation, Kern High School District Foundation, Kern Venture Group and KERO Channel 23 Community Advisory Board. 
Brar has served on the Central Valley Water Board, Kern Medical Board, CSUB Alumni Association Board, CSUB School of Business Executive Advisory Council, Rio Bravo Greeley Educational Foundation Board, Leadership Bakersfield Advisory Council, Girl Scouts of Central California South, Kern Health Systems, San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District, Arvin Redevelopment Agency, Farmworker Institute for Education, Arvin Chamber of Commerce, Bakersfield Police Department Community Advisory Panel, Government Relations Committee Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, City of Arvin Economic Development Committee and Subway’s Franchisee Marketing Board. 
Of all the boards she serves on, the one dearest to her heart is the Bakersfield Sikh Women’s Association, which is a nonprofit she co-founded. The mission of the association is to give back to the community through their various programs; Kaur Care, which is a partnership with hospitals to provide free health, cervical and breast cancer screenings as well as Covid vaccinations. They also have created a toll free first of its kind bi-lingual (Punjabi/English) resource line, You Are Not Alone, which partners with the Family Justice Center, the DA’s office, and the Police Department to help folks in crisis access the resources they need. The Sikh Women’s Association’s Seva Scholarship initiative gives out needs-based scholarships to deserving high school students throughout Kern County. Since its inception in March of 2015, the Women’s Association has given out over $350,000 in scholarships to college bound Kern County high school seniors and was recently selected as “Non-Profit of the Year” by the California State Assembly. 
She has received numerous awards and accolades; Bakersfield Life Magazine’s “20 under 40,” Girl Scouts “Women Inspiring Girls Award,” Hispanic Chamber Businesswomen of the Year, Kern County Chamber of Commerce Businessperson of the Year Beautiful Bakersfield Awards, CSUB’s Award for Outstanding Community Service, 24 Remarkable Women of the CSU, 2021 CSUB Hall of Fame Inductee, and 2022 Assembly District 32 Women of the Year. Brar has been a keynote speaker for many events such as the Central Valley SBDC Awards, Kern County Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Business Awards, Kern County Women’s March, the Bakersfield Women’s Business Conference and was a regular on the Ralph Bailey Radio Show.
She is happily married to her college sweetheart and husband of over 22 years, Dan and loves being a mother to her children, Davin, who is a sophomore at UC Irvine and Dylan and Imanni who are sophomores at Liberty High School, where Dylan plays for the golf team and Imanni plays for the volleyball and basketball teams.