What Students Have to Say… About CAP 1st Quarter 2009

“Very rarely have I taken a class that I look forward to during the school day. This quarter I had a class like that, it was CAP. ” ~Ollie Hewat

“This quarter CAP class has been outstanding. It is the only class in which I know everyone’s names and the only class I look forward to going to. CAP has allowed me to get to know people in ways that don’t happen easily in a classroom. I learned so much in an environment that I loved. I still feel like I did something big with the class working on GMO awareness. Telling an entire community about the stuff we learned on GMOs was the best thing that has happened all year.” ~Emily Morrison

“Everyday, after seminar, I felt like the bad part of my day was over and the real day was just beginning. I loved walking into CAP and seeing everyone’s happy and anticipating faces…I plan to take this knowledge and apply it wherever I go from the simple concepts like the 5 W’s to our large action project.” ~Sean Shriver-Karlson

“Where to begin? This class has made such a positive impact on my life, it is so hard to describe. It has not just changed my life it has taken me on a six-week journey…Everything ranging from the overnight prep to the Action Project week made me full of glee and excitement everyday. It has certainly been the best class I have taken. I learned more in this class than I have in my three years of high school. The purpose of this paper reads, “To reflect on your entire experience with the Community Adventure Program.” I know I won’t be able to fit my love for this class into five pages of writing.” ~Aaron Fox

“The more you do to help the world, the more powerful you feel, the less helpless… At the start of the quarter I was skeptical… I was sure I couldn’t learn anything new about the environmental problems of the world. When we began looking at issues I was close-minded and righteous. When we debated issues I had a strong “I am right and you are wrong” opinion. CAP has not only changed that righteousness, but it has ended it. As my mind open and I began to trust other people in the class I became more than willing to learn other people’s opinions. The action project renewed my faith in the human race.” Marely Kremler.

“I loved taking this class and learned a lot from being there. I made a bunch of new friends. The games and activities we did helped me in my life and made me think a lot more of the environment and how to deal with problems in general. This class helped me through the quarter, it gave me something to look forward to during the day. I’m extremely glad I took this class and I would recommend it to anyone and everyone.”
~Alex Reed

“When people are in nature, interact with it, and are open-minded about their surroundings they start to realize that [food and shelter] are something to do to stay alive and working takes on a whole new meaning. Nature seems to bring out people’s true feelings and selves. No longer are they pressed with worries of everyday life as they know it, they are facing other more meaningful issues…I’ve started realizing that every little thing that someone does, does help and that it makes you feel loads better if you have done something and channeled anger into productivity: the cycle of hope. I got so excited about making a difference that for my CE I’ve joined the Wildland Restoration Volunteers. I am the head youth coordinator for projects and youth involvement… Sometimes we are scared of playing too big of a role, or that we’ll mess up, but if we keep our minds in the right direction and we keep on trying, the outcome can only be positive.” ~Carrie Harrison

“CAP is amazing. I learned so much from this class. Not just wilderness skills and community projects, but forming tight friendships as well. I created very good relationships in this class that will continue. I laughed the hardest I’ve laughed in a long time and I was challenged in new ways that stretched my old ways of thinking; my comfort levels were stretched… and tears actually fell when I was laying in bed sick on speakerphone with the whole class the last day. I will miss CAP so much and am grateful that I could be a part of it.” ~Dakota Hindman

“This class made me realize that I do have a big impact on our earth, and at the beginning of this class it was not a positive impact…Everyone goes through life thinking that using one thing won’t make a big difference, but when we all think that way there is a snowball effect…If I can encourage my friends and family to take some of the action I have I know that we can live in a healthier world. Also simply taking an interest in other environmental issues and raising awareness about it can create a happier world. When interacting with others in a positive manner it creates a happier environment in class. Accepting everyone because of their differences helps you learn about others and have a wider variety of knowledge and bigger friend circle. Being positive and staying green helps the earth and our community. I will keep going with my studies about the earth and keeping happy.”~Liz Schweber

“CAP was an amazing class, I learned lots of things. the things I learned will carry out in my life to come. I am going to be able to teach my fellow peers about important things that matter to this world, and I learned it all at school. I made new friendships that are really close now and I learned how to be an asset and a leader in the community. I wish that all students in the country were as lucky as I am and could take this class. If every student took this class our climate change situation would have a positive turn for the better.” ~Olivia Henry-Corell

1st Quarter CAP — Action Project Week!

“Just say no to GMOs!”

hey, there — whatcha eating? Chips? Did you know that over 90% of all corn grown in the USA is genetically modified?

The 1st quarter CAP class’s Action Project, GMOs, taught them this, and many other startling facts about the nation’s Genetically Engineered food. It also taught them to be pay attention to the food they choose to eat. For their action project week students:

• Evaluated the contents of the vending machine.
• Had a GMO free bake sale.
• Did an awareness raising power point presentation for the school.
• And Hosted a GMO-free lunch for the school to raise awareness.

Students were inspired to pick GMO’s as their topic when they learned that Boulder County Commissioners are trying to decide whether to allow genetically modified sugar beets to grow on Open Space Land. The commissioners will make a decision soon and hope also to create an overarching policy for GMOs in Boulder County.

Other awesome highlights from the week: during their vending machine audit, students found that many items being sold probably contained genetically modified ingredients, it’s impossible to say for sure because in the United States companies are not required to label products which contain GMOs, unlike Europe, on Wednesday. students dressed up as creatures negatively affected by GMOs and presented to the school about what they had learned during Community Gathering; Thursday’s GMO free lunch was a hit!

There were some challenges however. “It’s a really complex issue,” said one student. “It was hard to make it [Action Project Week] fun for people and educational.”

Students say, it was also a struggle get started and definitively plan out all the details to  make a good Action Project. However, students said, “this class worked really well together,” and over the space of 9 weeks all made some solid friendships and learned a great deal about a pressing local environmental issue.

Great work, CAP class!

6 Things You Should Know About GMO’s

By The 1st Quarter CAP class, 2009

• Genetically modified organisms, or GMOs, are creatures, like plants, that have been altered by humans on a genetic level. This involves altering the DNA of an organism to produce a different trait in that creature.
• Monsanto, a large corporation, manufactures many GMO crops. One type of crop they produce is called “Roundup Ready.” This means that when these plants are sprayed with the herbicide, Roundup, they will not die, but all other plants will.

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• Some Percentages:
  90% of corn
  87% of soy beans
  91% of cotton
  95% of sugar beets
  Grown in the U.S. are genetically modified.
• In Europe companies are required to label food that contains GMOs. In the U.S., despite demand for labeling from a large part of the population, companies are not required to label GMO ingredients.
• According to the people we spoke with for our action project are many reasons for concern:
  GMO seeds can contaminate non-GMO sources.
  The spraying of Roundup decreases pollinator habitat.
  More herbicides are sprayed on Roundup Ready crops than on organic crops.
  These herbicides threaten amphibian populations and enter our water supply.

CAP Pre-Course Survey, 2nd Quarter 2009

Welcome to the Community Adventure Program. Before we get started, we need to get some feedback about the outdoors, the environment, your community, etc. Please answer this survey honestly and to the best of your ability. The good folks who fund this class use this information to assess the performance of the class and this information will help us acquire new grants. Please Click Here To Take The Survey.

CAP Post-Course Survey, 1st Quarter 2009

As the quarter comes to a close, I wanted to get some open and honest feedback from this class about how to improve the CAP for future students. This information will not affect your grade, but please take it seriously. It will be reviewed by your school, the Cottonwood Institute, and this information will help us secure funding to make this class accessible to other high school students. Please Click Here to Take the Survey.

1st quarter CAP: Overnight!

On the weekend of the 26th, the 1st quarter CAP class went on their first overnight!

Allenspark was beautiful, as always — and not a cloud in the sky! In fact, the only imperfection that weekend was the wind. It blew and blustered all the day and night.

But in spite of a rather sleepless night, students were exceptionally timely and were ready to have fun all weekend!

Some skills they learned: how to select a killer campsite, how to build fires (everything from one match to a bow drill) and how to survive in the wilderness when their lives depend on it. Two students made coals from bow drill sets! If you didn’t know, this is hard to accomplish. Go Alex and Francis!

And through it all, expedition behavior was prevalent. They didn’t hesitate to ask for — or give — help, and it made the trip much more enjoyable.

In all, this has been a well-bonding, enthusiastic, and integrally thoughtful group. Well done, CAP class! Have fun next weekend!