Lowell Whiteman School

“Of all the things that might be true about experiential education, the one thing that is unassailably true is that you can’t understand it by defining it, you must do it.” — John Huie

The Lowell Whiteman School is committed to experiential education – but it isn’t easy to define.  We’ve been doing it for over 50 years and our students call it The Whiteman Experience.   And what is that?  We’ve spent a lot of time thinking about it and asking our students what it meant to them.

Inspiring Minds and Inspiring Lives.

The young adults who choose the Lowell Whiteman School come to us with

unique dreams, perspectives & goals.

They are consistently

engaged, challenged and supported

through

rigorous academics, mentoring relationships & experiential education.

As a result of their LWS Experience, students become

comfortable with who they are, confident in their abilities and ready to lead remarkable lives.

Now we have to talk about Experiential because it’s very big in education today, and guess what?  Lowell Whiteman, our founder, was one of the very first to pioneer Experiential.  He went one step further and combined experiential with academics in the 1950’s.  Today, there are a lot of schools and camps rolling out similar programs but we do it best.

Many who have copied our program try to pull off experiential (camping, skiing, foreign trip, etc.) but few provide the college preparatory education along with the outdoor adventure that we do.   We have a long history of success and expertise with experiential education.  We have many teachers with over 20 years here, and they are truly dedicated  to our unique program.  Our success speaks volumes through the voices of our graduates.

So if you want to know what Experiential is…you might as well hear it from the source.  Our alums say:

• Experiential is an innovative way of enriching education.
• It combines the outdoors and activities outside the classroom – in other words, Epic Adventure.
• It involves learning to compete and excel in a sport or learning about foreign cultures on foreign soil.
• Experiential educates about the world by exposing students to the world – it opens their minds and creates community-minded, world-minded citizens.
• It helps build character, agility, strength, and self-confidence that allow students to stretch themselves.
• It builds life-long relationships, shares experiences and teaches human skills you can’t get in a traditional school.
• The Whiteman Experience helps develop a well-rounded individual, able to accept challenges, comfortable and successful in their world…….such people are comfortable with who they are, confident in their abilitys and ready to lead remarkable lives.

So how do we do The Whiteman Experience so well?

Our academics are carefully scheduled around experiential activities so we don’t sacrifice time in the classroom.  Students study hard and the curriculum is challenging.  LWS Experiential Education begins with our well established camp program.  We make the most of the Colorado Wilderness, some of which borders our campus.  Before we start classes in the fall, we camp and hike together on three separate trips, building unique relationships that are special in and out of the classroom.  Instead of PE,  in the fall we have afternoon activities, kayaking, biking, climbing, horseback riding, team sports, and physical training.

In the winter, we have recreational or competitive skiing and riding.  Those competing heavily find our academics can be tailored to their needs.  Clubs and community service are active through out the year.  Teachers who specialize in epic adventure such as climbing offer multiple trips all year long. College preparation begins Sophomore year and students go through a set of carefully orchestrated steps meant to gain them admission to the college of their choice.

In December and students split off on to one of two programs:

1) Competitive skiers and riders drop 1-2 classes until April to make time for training and competitions

or

2) Foreign Travelers and Ride-Write students (those who snowboard but compete less) begin to plan and define their own foreign trips with their leaders. They will depart in April on their trips.

While competitors train and compete and concentrate on fewer clases, foreign travelers begin to study in earnest the countries they will be visiting and even learning some of the language.  These trips  often combine many of the activities we have done all year.  A foreign trip might involve trekking, camping, kayaking, riding horses or backpacking.  It will most certainly involve teaching English in a foreign school for a few days, perhaps attending classes taught by our hosts.  It will involve community service in an area where there are no 7-11’s or McDonalds.  Students might work in a communal garden, or clean a temple in Mongolia. They might help build a house or paint a school.  They might volunteer in an orphanage.   Students come back with their sense of adventure well fulfilled and an appreciation of how other people live.

Our foreign travel program brings a wealth of experience for students and a sense that they are members of a world community, not just an American city or town.

Competitive skiers and riders will have used the time foreign travlers were gone to make up the 1-2 classes they dropped.   The two groups re-unite in late April and normally scheduled classes continue until Graduation.  Spring time means kayaking lessons begin for the never-ever’s and for those who want to really polish their skills.  Mountain bikes can hit the trails.  There is time for one or two ski hut trips before all the snow is gone.

And that’s Experiential.  From the Rocky Mountains to the deserts and canyons of the southwest, to the shores of foreign countries, we make tracks.  In between, we study hard and learn about the world.

Inspiring Minds and Inspiring Lives.