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CAP Class Saves a Drop, Saves a Liter, Saves the World!

Setting out from New Vista High School on our overnight trips with the Community Adventure Program (CAP) this quarter, the weather wavered between clear and sunny and cool and rainy.  It was officially the last hints of summer and the start of fall fully setting in. The energy was high, as students of all different… Read more »

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Military Kids National Guard Family Overnight

The Aspen leaves just began changing, and this weekend Cottonwood Institute had the chance to see the leaves and enjoy the fall weather camping with four National Guard families in Golden Gate Canyon State Park. The group had various outdoor experience but one commonality, as one of the mom’s explained, “My family doesn’t usually camp and my husband… Read more »

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Old Friendships Shine and New Friendships Emerge

The sun shined promisingly as a group of adventurous teenage girls met in the Centaurus High School parking lot, ready for a night of backpacking in the woods. The girls knew each other from school, but still had some familiarizing to do as a group. One thing they all had in common was being part… Read more »

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Military Families Appreciate Fire, Fossils, and Fun

Every trip has that seminal moment where you realize what makes it unique from others. This holds true for our last Cottonwood Institute adventure to Sanborn Western Camps in Florissant, CO.  The sole purpose of this weekend excursion was to reach out to military families in the Denver/Colorado Springs area and provide a relaxing, fun, and… Read more »

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A Wolf Lickin’ Good Time with STRIVE Schools

STRIVE Prep – Montbello and STRIVE Prep – Excel took memorable trips out to Mission: Wolf for a wolf lickin’, tree cuttin’, hay stackin’, night hikin’, stargazin’ good time! During our stay at the sanctuary, we had the opportunity to participate in a number of exciting activities; some highlights included team-building games, a night hike… Read more »

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A Perfect Recipe for the Perfect Adventure!

  All recipes call for a variety of ingredients depending on what you are creating.  At Cottonwood Institute, we create adventure, and we had the perfect ingredients for the perfect adventure this past May when we teamed up with Mission: Wolf for Littleton Academy’s third annual fifth grade trip. Over 50 fifth graders made the trek to… Read more »

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New Vista Students Help Boulder “Bee” Pesticide Free!

The Community Adventure Program (CAP) at New Vista High School in Boulder just finished up their spring quarter and student-led Action Project, tackling the very pervasive issue of native bee decline in Boulder County.  Each quarter the students decide on a topic of interest for their Action Project and the class works together to figure… Read more »

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CAP Class Builds Group Cohesion and Raises Team Morale

The Community Adventure Program (CAP) students from New Vista High School in Boulder, CO gladly scurried to the mountains for their first overnight trip of the quarter last weekend!  The group was more than ready to enjoy the CAP class outside classroom walls.  Cottonwood Institute’s CAP program provides outdoor excursions throughout the quarter where students… Read more »

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The Perfect Mix: Enthusiastic Cottonwood Institute Instructors & A Warm Sunny Winter Weekend

Cottonwood Institute (CI) headed to the mountains to explore with an enthusiastic, down-to-earth, bunch of new and well-versed instructors!  Our annual instructor training was held at Calwood Education Center outside of Jamestown, CO and was full of laughs, learning, sharing, and friendships in the making. “The CI instructor training was a wonderful reminder of why… Read more »