Clark University - Clark News fall 2003
Learning the ropes at Clark Trek 2003
Photos by Dan Vaillancourt
A new outdoor orientation program helps ease the transition to college for first-year students
What do rope climbing and canoe races have to do with starting your first year of college?
Forty first-year students found out at Clark Trek, a new, optional outdoor orientation program held one week prior to Clark's on-campus orientation for new students. The program took place in Charlton, Mass., at the picturesque Bement Camp and Conference Center—home to one of the largest high- and low-ropes courses in New England. The program was staffed by camp facilitators and upper-class Clark students, who led participants through some of the more than 60 different challenge activities at Bement Camp. These outdoor challenges helped the participants—known as Clark Trekkies—learn about group and team building, trust, solving problems, setting goals, communication and self-esteem.
For example, one group of students had to get each person over a huge, wooden industrial spool suspended between two trees—no running starts, jumping or hard landings allowed. The group needed to brainstorm, develop a plan and execute it. They needed to decide who would go first, who would go last and how they would get the last person over without someone boosting them up. After successfully bringing each member of the team to the other side of the spool, the students and group facilitator discussed how they adjusted their plan throughout the process, used many different ideas and needed to trust their fellow students to get them safely to the other side of the obstacle.
The group facilitator then explained to the students that they will need to use the same creativity, flexibility and trust when faced with challenges during their first year at Clark.
Instilling these skills in first-year students will help ease their transition to college life—and that's the real goal of Clark Trek, says Clark's Wellness Coordinator Jason Zelesky.
"We wanted them to have a lot of fun, but we wanted them to learn about Clark, about each other and about themselves," says Zelesky. "It also gave them the opportunity to form special bonds with each other."
According to Zelesky, the 40 participants were an eclectic mix who, without Clark Trek, may never have come into contact with each other during their four years at the University. Their reasons for attending the program were equally diverse. They went because they love camping, or don't know what to expect from college. Zelesky says some students also openly admitted their difficulty in making friends. After the first 24 hours, the first-year students had made fast friends with each other and their upper-class Clark Trek leaders. By the end of the week, Zelesky says, "They weren't rookies anymore."
In addition to making new friends and becoming more confident about joining the Clark community, Zelesky says these Clark Trekkies will act as mentors for their fellow first-year students and will be poised to become student leaders on campus.
Zelesky spearheaded the Clark Trek program with Dean of Students Denise Darrigrand. All incoming students were invited to apply for 72 spaces in the program. Participants paid an additional $250, which covered transportation to and from Clark, and food and lodging at Bement Camp. Darrigrand says the student evaluations show it was money well spent—39 ranked the overall program as "excellent" and one ranked it as "very good."
"We saw 40 new students come in, challenge themselves, support each other and come out of the week much more confident about themselves and their ability to take on the transition to college life," Darrigrand says. "It was a smashing success."
|
