I know that relative clause compounds are generally made with the following format. 

> 
sentence/verb/adjective + noun

My Genki I textbook supports this with the following example of a relative clause compound, with the noun 学生 being italicized in English.

> **あそこで本をよんでいる**学生はみちこさんです。
>
*The student* **who is reading a book over there** is Michiko.

However I remember browsing Japanesestackexchange last year and finding some users referring to the noun part of a relative clause compound as a 'main clause'. This has recently made me question where the noun/'main clause' ends in Japanese sentences.

Edit:
In other words, using the above example once more; is the entirety of 学生はみちこさんです the main clause which the relative clause modifies, or is it only the noun that is being modified; thereby restarting the sentence after the noun?