Course of Study
Integrating engaging academics, cultural exchange and outdoor adventure.
Challenging and engaging academic coursework is essential to building the skills needed to lead change. Courses are made more relevant and powerful by connecting to student experiences and places we explore. Living internationally broadens perspectives, and deep personal growth can be found through challenge in the outdoors. This whole-person approach to education, combined with the benefits of living in a small community, leads to tremendous outcomes.
academics
You will take five core classes: math, science, English, history, and Spanish, and two electives: Capstone Leadership Course and Outdoor Adventure Activity (PE). But the classrooms, educational approach, and experiences are unlike those in a traditional school setting with hundreds of students.
international education
During our Chilean expedition, you will immerse yourself in the Spanish language and Chilean culture. Whether you are sharing stories with a Chilean student during a hike in Patagonia National Park, making traditional Chilean food, or studying in a rustic cabana, there is no shortage of opportunities to explore and grow in one of the most beautiful and highly-coveted adventure destinations in the world.
Experiential outdoor education
Your classrooms will be the peaks of Patagonia, river canyons of Idaho, evergreen forests, and turquoise blue waters of southern Chile. The multi-week expeditions provide opportunities to motivate peers towards a common goal, connect academics with the places in which you travel, and find that you are stronger than you imagined through physical challenge. Stunning backdrops and inspiring vistas abound.
Leadership education
You will develop as leaders through the integration of academics with outdoor adventure and cultural exchange. Students find personal growth from the challenge of the outdoors, cultural experiences in Chile, and the close relationships they form with their faculty. You will work through an academic study of leadership, and then turn ideas into action in the community, on the trail, and when you return to your home community with your Culminating Leadership Projects.