Alumni in Action
Sometimes the best way to get in touch is by going
Into the Woods
By Larkin Flora, NOLS Development Communications Coordinator, and Rich Brame, NOLS Alumni Relations Director
NOLS courses engage students with the land and often empower them to share their wildland connections with others. NOLS educator courses enhance teaching skills and provide opportunities for practice and feedback. Occasionally, skills, passion, and circumstances combine to allow a NOLS grad to accomplish truly great things. NOLS Southwest Educator grad Raeford Dwyer is an inspiring example of the power of one. It is difficult to foster a personal connection with the planet if you’ve never truly stepped outdoors. Young people who are deprived of outdoor experiences don’t form
Hailing from the poorest and most urban district in the country, many of his students have never been outside the Bronx and are not aware of the outdoor opportunities that are within reach of public transportation. connections to the Earth, and as future stewards of our planet, it is extremely important that they do. Dwyer recognized this need and, with the aid of a grant from the Sierra Club, started Into the Woods, a popular, selective, afterschool enrichment program that gets urban kids outdoors. For the past two springs, Dwyer has taken 30 students from a middle school in the Bronx, out to explore green and wild places in the surrounding area. Hailing from the poorest and most urban district in the country, many of his students have never been outside the Bronx and are not aware of the outdoor opportunities that are within
wildrness Medicine Quiz Which of the following is a treatment principle for frostbite? a. slow warming at room temperature. b. rapid warming in warm water. c. rapid warming near an open flame or a heater. d. massaging frozen tissue.
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The answer is on pg. 23, but you might want to stop by pg. 27 first.
Leader
reach of public transportation. Working with young people in the outdoors is, in some ways, the easiest part of Dwyer’s program. Before stepping outside, he had to scrounge up funding, win over school administrators and develop solid curriculum. Into the Woods utilizes an experiential environmental ethics curriculum based on Leave No Trace ethics, navigation skills, and natural history. Piloted in a middle school in the Bronx, Dwyer has put his curriculum into practice in the parklands of New York in collaboration with Morningside Center for Teaching Social Responsibility. Outings include exploration of Hunter Island’s coastal wetlands and canoeing on the Bronx River. Along with encouraging the students to document their experiences through photography, drawing, and journaling, Dwyer teaches them many of the things he learned on his NOLS course. He focuses largely on Leave No Trace wilderness ethics, encourages good expedition behavior and breaks the students into small groups to give each a chance to practice leadership skills. The students learn orienteering, and, to practice, Dwyer allows them to get off course. Some of the kids fear being lost in the woods, but Dwyer says the supervised experience is always a positive one. Before coming to NOLS or launching Into the Woods, Dwyer followed his own
circuitous path. Born in South Africa, he worked in television, designing set graphics and as a photographer. But Dwyer realized he needed more to his life. That’s what brought him to NOLS. It wasn’t until he completed his course that he considered becoming an outdoor educator. Dwyer still spends a large portion of his time in front of a screen or behind a camera, but once Into the Woods gains momentum, he hopes to expand the program into other schools. The organization currently conducts 10 programming days a year, but Dwyer would like to provide the experience year round, “so we can do things in every season and see nature’s changes.” As his endeavor gains more funding and volunteers, Dwyer wants to include a short overnight backpacking trip. "I think the outdoors is every child’s birthright. Sleeping outside, looking at the stars, climbing in a tent, which is a mini-house you just built yourself, and cooking your own food is a huge opportunity for a connection with nature. I really want to make it happen for these kids.” Into the Woods now has a volunteer program. If you are interested in volunteering, email Raeford at admin@raeford.net, and he will mail you a packet to start the process. For more information, go to http://intothewoodsonline.org.
NOLS Southwest Educator grad Raeford Dwyer stands with his students before taking a canoe trip down the Bronx River. Courtesy of Raeford Dwyer