National Outdoor Leadership School

The National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS), is a non-profit outdoor education school based in the United States dedicated to teaching environmental ethics, technical outdoor skills, safety and judgment, and leadership on extended wilderness expeditions. NOLS runs a very wide range of courses and has trained more than 120,000 students.^{[citation needed]} Along with Outward Bound they are considered the gold standard in outdoor leadership.

History

Early years

NOLS was founded in 1965 by Paul Petzoldt, a world-famous mountaineer and a member of the Army's 10th Mountain Division, with the backing of three affluent Lander residents (Ed Breece, legislator and Petzoldt's brother-in-law; Jack Nicholas, legislator; and William Ericson, physician). Breece, Nicholas, and Ericson formed the nucleus of the early board of trustees. Petzoldt was also an early Outward Bound Chief Instructor, and he wanted to establish a school which promoted concentrating on refining outdoor leadership skills.

The first facility opened in 1965 at Sinks Canyon, Wyoming. June 8, 1965 marks the date of the founding and the first trip beginning at the trailhead of Hidden Valley ranch where 100 male students went into the Wind River Range. In the beginning NOLS struggled with finances to provide necessities for outdoor trips so developed the “uniform” made of Salvation Army donations. In 1971 the administrative offices were moved to Lander, Wyoming, where NOLS is still based today. NOLS also has facilities in Alaska, Washington, Arizona, Utah, Idaho, Chile, Mexico, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the Yukon Territory, Baffin Island, Scandinavia, Brazil and India.

"30 Days to Survival"

The school began to grow in the early years and in 1966, women were allowed to enroll. In 1967, The Adventure Courses began for young boys aged thirteen to fifteen.

NOLS grew enormously during the 1970s, due to the publicity gained by an appearance on NBC's Alcoa Hour. The episode, titled "30 Days to Survival", followed a NOLS course through the Wind River Range. The school's focus became more ecological; conservation and preservation began to rank with leadership training in terms of emphasis. As a result of the airing, the school’s enrollment grew from 250 students in 1969 to over 750 in 1970. Also, the article, “Last Mountain Man? Not If He Can Help It”, featured the school and Paul Petzoldt for his commitment to the school in December 1969. The growth continued; by the end of 1976, NOLS had 40 instructors and from 1976 to 1977, had enrolled 1,523 students.

1980s and 1990s

During the 1980s, NOLS continued to evolve. NOLS partnered with the University of Utah to offer college credit for courses, and helped create the U.S. Leave No Trace program. In 1989, NOLS adopted an outcome-based education model. In 1999, NOLS acquired the Wilderness Medicine Institute, one of the nation's foremost trainers of wilderness medicine. NOLS also began to offer professional training to corporate and institutional clients.

Fatalities

NOLS reported 3 fatalities from 1984 to 1998 (fatality rate of 0.002 per 1000 program days). Based on that rate NOLS estimates an average rate of fatalities of one every 3.17 years.

Curriculum

In the courses that NOLS offers, they teach leadership, outdoor recreation hard skills, environmental awareness, and risk management.

Wilderness Medicine Institute

Founded by Buck Tilton and Melissa Gray in Pitkin, Colorado in 1990, the WMI was later purchased by NOLS in 1999."NOLS Timeline". http://www.nols.edu/about/history/timeline.shtml.  Now known at the Wilderness Medical Institute of NOLS, they are one of the leading wilderness medicine organizations in both the United States and internationally. The location of courses which offer such training for students are in India, Mexico, New Zealand, Patagonia, Rocky Mountains, and Southwest. Training includes certification in Wilderness Emergency Medical Technician, Wilderness First Responder, Wilderness Advances First Aid, and Wilderness First Aid.

Notable alumni

• Christine Boskoff, who has achieved more 8,000 meter summits than any other woman
• David Breashears, mountaineer and filmmaker
• Anderson Cooper, CNN anchor
• Kit Deslauriers, first person to ski down the Seven Summits
• Zach Gilford, star of Friday Night Lights on NBC
• Chip Giller, founder of Grist Magazine
• Jonathan Hamren, entrepreneur, Trustee of Project Redwood
• Sebastian Junger, author of The Perfect Storm
• Britton Keeshan, at one point the youngest person to achieve the Seven Summits
• John F. Kennedy, Jr., politician
• William Harjo LoneFight, noted Native American author, entrepreneur and social critic
• Andrew McCarthy, actor
• David Morrell, author of First Blood, the novel in which Rambo was created
• Tom Kiernan, National Parks Conservation Association President
• Candice Carpenter Olson, co-founder of iVillage
• Phil Powers, Director of the American Alpine Club
• Tom Scott, co-founder of Nantucket Nectars