Our School’s Core Values:
• Life of the Mind
• Mature Behavior
• Mutual Respect
• A Secure and Healthful Environment
• A Balance Between Individual Achievement and a Caring Community
A Living Laboratory
A320-acre campus of woods, fields, and streams, nestled in the hills of northwestern Connecticut and vibrant with the sights and sounds of the outdoors, creates a natural wonderland waiting to be experienced by each Horace Mann School student. This is the setting of the John Dorr Nature Laboratory – a place that uses the rhythm of the seasons to help students explore changes in themselves and the world around them. This setting becomes a medium for the students’ self-discovery, and through which they can examine their relationships with others, and study the natural environment in new and growth-enhancing ways. Maintaining the stewardship of these ideals are Dorr’s full-time faculty and staff which include a Director, Assistant Director, three teachers, an administrative assistant, and maintenance and nursing staff.
The idea of an outdoor campus was the inspiration of school administrators and John Dorr, an inventor, and a friend of the school. Moved by the ancient Greek adage “character is worth,” HM personnel believed that it was the duty of schools to provide experiences, both inside and outside the traditional classroom, that nurture a sense of personal worth and responsibility, and an appreciation of the natural environment. In 1964, this dream became a reality when Nell Dorr gave Horace Mann School 85 acres of land in Washington, Conn., in memory of her husband John. Today’s Dorr campus comprises a Gold LEED-certified lodge and multipurpose barn built in 2010, the original Payne lodge, two student bunkhouses, three apartments for visiting faculty, four faculty residences, two private ponds, swamplands, wetlands, streams, five miles of trails, and maintenance and support facilities.
Certain activities take place over the course of many years. All students have a chance to experience Dorr’s high ropes courses. From the Adventure Treehouse for younger students to the 45-foot Cooperative Adventure Tower (C.A.T.), Odyssey Course, or our multi-surface climbing wall for older students the challenges of climbing are just a few ways in which students feel accomplished at Dorr. Science themes such as astronomy (using our inflatable Planetarium Dome), stream ecology, forest health, and simply appreciating nature are additional themes to which we return year after year.
“ I was so excited to sleep at Dorr for the first time. At night, the teachers read us The Lorax and in the morning we all woke up a bit sleepy but ready to start an awesome day full of adventure.” – Sophia ’24
An early welcome to Dorr’s natural playground
The Dorr experience begins for the pre-k, kindergarten and first grade students when the Dorr faculty visit their campuses in Manhattan and the Bronx. Programs involve creative play, hands-on apple cider making, insect exploration, and astronomy.
Students visit Dorr for the first time in the second grade for a one-day program in late May. They spend time searching the pond and swamp looking for different life forms, learning how to fish, making crafts, and observing nature through sensory awareness activities. Third graders spend two days in April exploring their relationship with themselves and others as they collaboratively build natural homes in the forest, problem solve as a community, and become comfortable spending a night away from their own bed. These students feel accomplished after mapping out their new imaginary homes, empathizing with the many ways of being “at home,” and building on the small risks a third grader takes when investigating in the woods.
The three-day fourth grade program serves, in part, as an extension of the grade’s study of stream ecology and weather. The students also pursue creative writing assignments, go swimming and canoeing, work together building fires and cooking for one another, and learn to use unstructured play to form friendships and create adventures.
The fifth grade course uses the metaphor of a journey to assist students as they reflect on their own experience, and explore their relationships with one another as well as their time in the Lower Division. The design includes scientific observation of the environment, astronomy, rock climbing and apple cider making.
Growing up and learning together
Horace Mann’s sixth graders visit Dorr for three days at the start of the school year where a year-long guidance program is initiated. Designed to enhance the transition into the Middle Division the students engage in activities with their homeroom teachers, the Dorr faculty, and Upper Division student mentors. The program includes problem-solving games, raft building, discussion groups, and activities that encourage and cultivate a respect for the needs and feelings of others.
The seventh grade comes to Dorr for a two-day science program that focuses on forest health and climate change. The field study and subsequent lab report bridge the gap between conceptual learning and real-world application.
“ In middle school and high school, Dorr was the only place I could be free from all the stresses of growing up. I learned to trust myself and my competencies; I learned how to find peace in the craziest situations; I learned how to jump into things that scare me; and I learned to love nature on a level that I’d previously thought impossible.” – Emily Spector ‘17 who was recognized with HM’s Dorr Passion and Purpose Award
“The
C.A.T. (Cooperative Adventure Tower) was meaningful to me because it made me explore qualities inside myself and others. One quality I found inside myself was trust. … When you trust others and yourself it makes that leap of faith easier and more meaningful.”
– Amanda ’19
Easing the transition for eighth graders
The longest program consists of eight days at the nature lab and is reserved for eighth graders. It is a significant learning experience for many students. The tasks they must accomplish during their stay range from fundamental chores to making tough decisions such as finding their way through the woods with a map and compass in the dark, or distributing equipment equitably for a backpacking trip so that no one is overburdened. As a result students are compelled to think carefully and responsibly in new patterns.
The first four days of the program are spent creating a common experience by introducing students to problem solving activities designed to help them experience themselves and their relationships with others in new and different ways. These activities include learning how to get ten people over a ten-foot wall, climbing the 45-foot C.A.T. while students depend on a classmate to belay them, or zipping off the tower on a 300-foot zip wire. The activities require communication, trust, and cooperation. What does this look like? Intense discussion, compromise, wonder, empathy: in short community building with purpose.
The last four days are spent planning and implementing a backpacking trip on the Appalachian Trail. Although teachers accompany each of the two groups of eight to ten students, the students plan, organize, and carry out the journey as independently as possible. Ultimately, students are asked to spend time reflecting on their experience, and on how it may be relevant to other aspects of their lives and futures.
“ In the Odyssey, (high-ropes course), I was able to bond with people I would have never talked to at school. I was able to see unexpected sides and personalities of friends or others.”
– Miyu ’19
lasting memories
he Upper Division orientation is a three-day program designed to welcome students entering Horace Mann . The activities introduce the students to the social and academic life of the school, and provide them with an opportunity to form new friendships.
including a three-day workshop for Middle Division homeroom
training, and different music or theater performing arts groups, or sports teams participate in group-building weekends. Students
workshops on renewable energy and biodiversity. Dorr faculty assist the Outdoor Club to design rock climbing, canoeing and
The Searcher Program is a ten-week adaptive Outward Bound that meets after school each day and includes four weekend trips. The program is a group experience designed
and spirit through rigorous and contemplative outdoor activities, including backpacking, rock climbing, white-water canoeing, a solo experience, and a five-day student-led final expedition in the Adirondack Mountains. The Searcher experience relies as much on absorbing awareness through emotions as it does consciously acquiring it through intellect. Each participant is encouraged to move beyond viewing life through the arrested eye of preconceived comfort zones, and to embrace oneself with a new sense, a heartfelt
Finally, each year in June, graduating seniors have an opportunity to share in a celebratory weekend called Senior Dorr, as a special
A lesson for the ages
The Dorr Nature Laboratory is a place where kids can be kids within a unique learning environment while rising to the occasions that present themselves. By exploring their own emotional intelligence, they learn the importance of community. This cannot be imposed or asked for, but must grow out of experience. It is a concomitant, not of working together and relying on one another, but of a shared experience of having worked together and having relied upon one another. It is a camaraderie that springs from a respect and affection for one’s companions. Students learn that mutual success hinges on mutual concern, and nothing less. Gaining this knowledge is one of the many rewards of time spent at Dorr, and one of the lessons students carry into the world.
“
At Dorr [we] strip away all those other focuses that distract [us] from the community and all that’s left is the group [we’re] with. For three days that’s your whole focus, that’s your whole life, just right here. That’s not something you get at school or anywhere else…for me being able to live entirely in the moment and just focus entirely on the group I’m with is something incredibly special and something I’m grateful for.”
– Jack Golub ’15 Teacher, Austin Achieve Middle School
“ It made me realize that there’s so much you could be missing by looking down at a screen.”
– Ragan ’19
“I remember fondly my trips to Dorr. Images of making apple cider, collecting wooly bear caterpillars, sleeping away from home with my classmates appear in my mind. It felt so far away from New York City and allowed us to get to know ourselves and peers in a way that the classroom never would have allowed.”
– Kelly
Levin ‘98, Chief of Science, Data and Systems Change
Bezos
Earth Fund
The Dorr Experience
Dorr programs take place under the supervision of a faculty consisting of the Director, Assistant Director, and three other full-time teachers. Additional support is provided by a full-time nurse, a full-time administrative assistant, on-site maintenance staff and a full-time chef. The Head of School, Division Heads and select faculty members and administrators also work to collaboratively support the Dorr programs. Programs for each grade are designed to enhance the educational experience at Horace Mann School’s other campuses. The philosophical principle that underscores the curriculum at Dorr is the belief that developing a sense of community within a school is essential to creating a positive learning environment. The merits of cooperation are apparent to students from the moment they arrive: whether working together doing Beauty and Order, negotiating obstacles on the high-and-low ropes courses, or successfully completing a backpacking trip, they all require a union of effort. Each student is stimulated by age-appropriate activities, experimentation, and risk in order to learn, to grow, and, most important, to nurture a sense of self.
“ As an alum, teacher and parent, I have found Dorr to be a safe space that allows students to discover, appreciate and understand a little bit more about themselves and each other. The magic of Dorr is that students can feel both vulnerable and supported at the same time. Students work together, help one another and have experiences that create everlasting bonds and memories.”
– Susan Delanty ’79, Upper Division Teacher
Commitment to environment
common thread that runs through all programs is one of student awareness, understanding and appreciation for nature. Dorr’s 19,000 square-foot LEED-certified lodge and barn represent the school’s commitment to environmental sustainability. Solar roof panels generate 30% of the facility’s energy each year, and a live solar data monitoring system allows students to see how much energy is used and generated on a daily basis. A geothermal pump helps to cool the facilities, further reducing energy consumption and carbon emissions. Rainwater is recycled for irrigation and sanitation. Sustainability concepts come to life as students compost food to fertilize Dorr’s garden. Weighing food waste after each meal and tracking energy and water usage encourages self-reflection with the goal of reducing waste. Students learn how to be stewards of the land by planting trees, gardening, or caring for the forests and fields thereby fostering a connection with the Earth.
“To me, one of the main reasons for coming to Dorr was to make new and lasting friendships, and without free time, it would have been impossible. We all gathered on the couches and talked and played guitar (or at least tried to).”
– Veronica ’19
Weekends spent at Dorr, sitting around a campfire with side-aching laughter and wonderful company, are among the best memories of my life.”
– Paul Wang ‘20, who was recognized with HM’s Dorr Passion and Purpose Award
Dorr and the Broader Community
The John Dorr Nature Laboratory, and its faculty members and facilities, play an important role in the professional and communal life of the Horace Mann School. All new employees participate in an orientation at Dorr showcasing how the Dorr program supplements and enriches the instruction taking place on the Manhattan and Bronx campuses. From full-day professional development workshops providing the space and time required for deep thought and extended conversations about the HM’s curriculum, to smaller workshops on each of the campuses featuring Dorr faculty members, to grade-level specific or Division-wide team-building activities, to opportunities for acquiring new pedagogical practices, Dorr is a critical player in the Life of the Mind at Horace Mann School.
The Annual Dorr Family Picnic has become an integral part of the start of each school year, welcoming new and returning families, alumni and their families, and employees and their families. Each year, Dorr faculty members strive to introduce one or more new initiatives designed to strengthen the connections between our Connecticut campus and those in New York.
“ Dorr teaches leadership, teamwork, compassion, and good judgement – all in the framework of a wilderness experience with classmates. It introduced me to a new world called ‘Nature’ and a lifelong path of learning from and within her beauty.”
–
Josh Bernstein ’89, Founder and C.E.O. of Explorer at Large (XAL)
Dorr Terms
– Four 40-foot connected towers fully enclosed by netting and used as an introduction to safe risk taking
– Each student group maintains Dorr for each other and all subsequent groups. Duties include cooking, washing,
– Eight-acre pond fed by adjacent wetlands where students participate in fishing, frog catching, canoeing, swimming,
– The nurse’s office at Dorr
.
– The Alpine Tower at Dorr is named the Cooperative
– Guiding our behavior and the way we relate to one another at Dorr, the Circle Ingredients include concepts such as treating each other the way we want to be treated and being
– A scrumptiously inviting way to experience how to cook a hot dog over an open fire (4th Grade only)
– Two chocolate chip cookies with a roasted
– One of the hallmarks of Dorr is instilling independence. Dorr teachers consistently ask students to examine
– The Mud Suckers live in the swamp and survive
– Bunkhouse for visiting students named for Nell Dorr
– Longitudinal high-ropes course designed to be traversed
– Named for an HM faculty member from the preDorr days, Payne was the original Lodge on the Dorr campus and still houses second, third, and fourth-grade programs.
– Bunkhouse for visiting students, named for the
“I grew up in a fairly urban environment, so having the chance to experience an environment like Dorr helped me appreciate the outdoors both professionally and personally. Hiking through the woods, building campfires, and just spending time outdoors –that definitely shaped me.”
–
Nadine Block ‘89, Senior VP, Community and Government Relations, Sustainable Forestry Initiative
Important Phone Numbers
Nick DePreter (860) 868-2230
Director
Kate Kerrick (860) 868-2230
Assistant Director
Amy Moisan
Administrative Assistant (860) 868-2230
Care & Comfort (Nurse) (860) 868-2230
After Hours (9:30p.m.-7:30a.m.) (646) 531-3855
Emergency Telephone Number
When Students are in Residence
Directions to Campus
Directions from Riverdale
Take the Saw Mill River Parkway North to Route 684 North. Follow Route 684 to Route 84 East (Danbury, CT). Stay on 84 East for approximately 26 miles to Exit 15 (Southbury, Woodbury). Go down the ramp and turn left on to Route 6. Follow Route 6 for about 5 miles to the intersection of Route 47. Turn left on to Route 47 and go about 1 mile to Route 132. Bear right on to Route 132 and follow it for about 4.3 miles to Carmel Hill Road North (look for a grass island in the road). Turn left on to Carmel Hill Road North and go 0.7 miles to a driveway on your left, 121 Carmel Hill Road North, Bethlehem, CT. Follow the driveway for 1.3 miles until it ends.
Alternate route:
The Cross County Expressway to the Hutchinson Parkway to route 684 north or the Major Deegan to 287 East to 684 North.
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