John Gans: In the Classroom of the World
A conversation with the Executive Director of the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS)
DG: How and when did NOLS get started?
JG: NOLS was started in 1965 by legendary mountaineer Paul Petzoldt. The mid-‘60s brought with it the passage of the Wilderness Act, dramatic growth in college outdoor programs, Earth Day and many other programs that increased the participation in wilderness trips. Paul noticed this growth and started NOLS to train leaders for these programs and for guide services. From the start, the curriculum Paul developed emphasized leadership and judgment, outdoor skills and minimum impact camping.
Paul founded NOLS as a non-profit educational institution and it remains that to this day.
How and when did you get involved with NOLS?
I was a student on a NOLS East Africa Semester Course in 1979. This course was my last semester of college after three and a half years of studying physics and math. In addition to learning wilderness skills and leadership, the NOLS semester changed my views on education and on the world. Clearly it was more impactful than any previous educational experience.
I returned in the summer of 1980 for further training as a NOLS instructor and in 1981 started my NOLS career as a wilderness and mountaineering instructor in the Wind River Mountains of Wyoming.
How has the organization evolved through the years?
NOLS has evolved in many ways, but probably most noteworthy are the areas that haven’t changed. NOLS still provides a powerful educational experience in awe-inspiring classrooms. Our students continue to learn both experientially and from formal classes. The core curriculum continues to focus on outdoor skills, leadership and minimum impact camping skills.
Of course the school has also changed. From our start in Wyoming we now offer educational experiences on every continent. Our classrooms, course types, students and staff are all far more diverse. We teach programs in several languages and in many different cultures.
Our Wilderness Medicine Institute (WMI) focuses specifically on wilderness first aid skills and is primarily taught to outdoor professionals. Our NOLS Professional Training Department (NOLS Pro) offers contract courses to existing groups, including companies, Naval Academy students, public land managers and NASA astronauts.
We now teach over 10,000 students a year and are approaching 200,000 NOLS alumni around the world.
What are the primary hallmarks and goals of NOLS courses/trips?
First off, NOLS really is a school. Many of our students receive college credit or graduate school credit. We have a clear curriculum and our research department works to provide evidence-based research on the effectiveness of a NOLS education.
Key to our philosophy is experiential education. On our courses, students learn in many ways, but a hands-on education is core. The wilderness is a wonderful classroom as it provides feedback and consequences; those are powerful factors for a learning experience.
At NOLS, education is also fun. Every day, students awake to new opportunities and adventures that peak their interest and inspire their learning. Our courses are not guided experiences, but rather our goal is for every NOLS student to develop the skills necessary to effectively lead a group of their friends on a similar expedition.
How would you describe the typical NOLS participant?
Widely varied. Our typical students range in age from 14-70 (with some students outside that range). They may be high school students or NASA astronauts ready to go into space. Some of our students on wilderness courses are outdoor professionals, but many are new to the wilderness and want a learning versus a guided experience in the outdoors. A higher percentage of our WMI students are outdoor professionals, but there is also variety in this group. The vast majority of our students are still from the United States, but the international percentage is growing over time.
What are the prime challenges facing NOLS today?
Continuing to diversify our student body is our primary challenge. This is particularly important so that the champions of public lands are broad based. Our scholarship support is approaching $1 million and yet we are not able to meet all of the needs (especially from some international locations). To meet those needs, we have to expand our endowment and our annual fund support.
A second challenge for us is the impacts to our classrooms around the world. In many areas, our public lands are challenged by competing uses and also by broader global impacts. These impacts require us to run our organization in sustainable fashion and to also influence the future directions of public land management.
A third significant area of challenge is the development of our staff and faculty. I strongly believe we have the most talented faculty of any outdoor education school. As this faculty gets older and more experienced, we need to find ways to make their career choices more sustainable.
How do you see NOLS evolving in the future?
NOLS will continue to become a more global organization. We will continue to teach wilderness skills, leadership and conservation, but our reputation for leadership education will continue to grow significantly. Our endowment and the support of our alumni will grow and will make it possible for us to have a needs-blind admissions policy. Our graduates, with their passion for leadership and conservation, will continue to change the world in a more positive direction. They will be agents of change for our planet.
What’s the greatest pleasure of your work for you?
The greatest pleasure is to see the changes that our students go through from the start to the end of their courses. It is a life-changing experience for so many of them. They carry those positive changes and lessons with them for a lifetime.
Is there one moment or anecdote that captures the rewards of your work?
There are so many, but one that stands out is of a summit day (or more accurately a summit night) of an unnamed peak in the middle of the Chugach Mountains of southern Alaska. I was with a group of three students that were all new to ice and snow mountaineering at the start of their course. We completed a first ascent of this peak and were on top at about 3:00 a.m. The Alaska Range, Wrangells and St. Elias Ranges were surrounding us and were bathed in early morning alpenglow. The smiles of confidence and achievement, bathed in morning light, on the faces of these students, were stunning and will remain with me for a lifetime.
