Outdoor Experiences Connect Students with Nature and Their Communities

November 11, 2019

Nearly 450 middle school students participated in seven immersive outdoor and river adventure days with Project Success this fall. Students explored nature “in their own backyards” at locations like Fort Snelling State Park and Lake Phalen.

Creating day-long field trips centered in the Twin Cities gives students a chance to try something new in nature and act as an introduction for our longer, seven-day Boundary Waters Canoe Area (BWCA) wilderness experiences that happen during the summer months. Through these unique outdoor expeditions, students practice team building, community support, appreciation of our city’s natural environment, and learn more about environmental conservation and stewardship.

Students practice paddling and canoeing, nature hikes, orienteering, water quality testing and water conservation, survival skills, and learn the history and culture of the Mississippi River. This time in nature, alongside their school community, broadens students’ visions for their futures while developing a generation who care for and are passionate about the outdoors. Students become stewards of the natural environment and apply that experience to their academic and personal lives – it carries over into their classrooms, schools and broader communities.

More than 90 percent of students surveyed about our experiential learning opportunities say that the program helped them improve their ability to get along with new people, and helped their ability to stick with a task, even when it is difficult.

Project Success expeditions help hundreds of students each year dream big, ignite possibilities and grow into inspired individuals ready for success. Help Project Success offer more outdoor experiences for more students by making a gift for Give to the Max Day. 

Many thanks to our River Adventure Days partner, Wilderness Inquiry, for helping to make these field trips successful.

More photos from our Fall 2019 Outdoor Experiences