Thirty-two years ago, Proctor launched a trimester long, adventure-based wilderness excursion called Mountain Classroom. Featured in a National Geographic education magazine, the program immediately became the prototype for experiential programs at schools and colleges nationwide. Today, another ten students and two faculty are touring and studying the Southwest on (by my count) the 85th Mountain Classroom expedition.

What makes Mountain Classroom special is the marriage of college preparatory academic coursework with personal challenge and intense group dynamics. Students earn a full complement of academic credits while studying water resource management, health and sanitation, international border disputes and immigration, desert ecology and literature of Western authors. All of this is integrated with dramatic personal and group experiences, desert solos, and spiritual moments.

This summer, for the first time, an additional Mountain Classroom will set out from Seattle into the Northern Cascade Wilderness and Glacier Peak starting on June 25 and running until July 31. The program is open to both Proctor and non-Proctor students, ages 16-19, and will yield two academic credits. The course will make its way by foot over glaciers and a volcano, then by boat down the rivers flowing into the Puget Sound.

Workshops will include animal tracking, bird language, ethno botany, geology, and an introduction to philosophy. Students will complement these workshops by designing their own independent science or humanities projects.

Tuition for the summer Mountain Classroom program is $3900, and limitied financial assistance is available. Students and families interested in exploring this option should contact Patty Pond at patty_pond@proctornet.com or call 603-735-6241.