Equity, diversity, accessibility and inclusion

Historically, Oregon’s outdoor school programs were developed for and by the dominant culture, and attending outdoor school was a privilege. With the successful adoption of Measure 99, voters made outdoor school a right for all Oregon 5th and 6th grade students. Therefore, the staff, culture and interdisciplinary curriculum of outdoor school must reflect and embrace the physical, social and emotional identities of all participants.

Systemic-level change to outdoor school is essential to ensure the equitable inclusion of all participants – prioritizing the most marginalized identities and communities.

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Featured story: Creative solutions for remote areas of the state

The OSU Extension Outdoor School Program works to ensure that every student in Oregon has an equitable and impactful outdoor school experience, including the most remote and underserved portions of our state. In the eastern region of Oregon, where there are several rural schools and districts that historically have not participated in outdoor school, we were able to identify and overcome barriers for the Harney County ESD collaboratively. Every community has its unique needs, and we will continue to collaborate and work closely with partners across the state to provide empowering learning experiences for all students.

Transcript

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in 2016 Oregon voters passed measure 99

which provides funding for every fifth

or sixth grade student in the state of

Oregon the opportunity to attend and

experience an outdoor school event

the OSU Extension Service outdoor school

program oversees the allocation of this

funding to school districts throughout

the state

in the far Southeast corner of Oregon

lies Harney County one of the most

remote and underserved regions of our

state

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recently the number of kindergarten

through 8th grade students enrolled in

these small and Rural schools ranged

from 2 to 14 students

often the few students who attend these

rural schools are also siblings who can

commute upwards of 30 minutes one way

in 2019 seven of nine school districts

in the county were not accessing measure

99 funding the OSU outdoor school

program which works to ensure that every

student in Oregon has an equitable and

impactful Outdoor School experience

recognized this and begin the process of

identifying obstacles that limited

participation in these programs over the

past several years the OSU outdoor

school program worked closely with

Partners in the community to identify

and better understand the barriers to

participation for these Harney County

students

these conversations and relationships

with Community stakeholders led to the

identification of two main issues

these seven small and Rural school

districts are K-8 schools with combined

classrooms this means that many of these

schools don't always have an eligible

fifth or sixth grade student in order to

access measure 99 funding

additionally during spring and fall

months when Outdoor School typically

occurs these students are often needed

at home to work on the ranches where

they live

children leaving home for multiple days

at a time during these key times of the

year would not adequately reflect the

values of the community

after developing a better understanding

of the variables that have historically

made Outdoor School inaccessible to this

region the OSU outdoor school program

then worked closely with the Harney

County Educational Service District ESD

to develop a three-year bridge to

Outdoor School Grant

this grant adapts the measure 99

guidelines and allows the ESD to design

a program that meets the unique needs of

this incredible rural Harney County

community

with this grant funding the ESC began

implementing their Outdoor School

programming in the fall of 2021 and was

able to include all students from these

small and Rural schools

this past October students attended a

three-day two-night outdoor school

program at omsi's Camp Hancock this Camp

is in the heart of central Oregon's High

Desert and adjacent to the John Day

Fossil Beds National Monument

here students learned about geology and

paleontology as they explored the

breathtaking landscape while learning

about the various processes that formed

the area and those that are now eroding

it

students were educated about the rock

cycle and the local formations that

represent 50 million years of geologic

climactic and environmental change

students also learned how various

fossils form and what scientists can and

have uncovered about the area's Natural

History by studying them

when asked about something new she

learned at outdoor school one student

said I learned that fossils are actually

only one kind of rock also I learned how

they were made and how and why there

were so many Leaf fossils versus animal

ones

in March of 2023 students visited

Anthony Lakes ski resort located in the

Elkhorn mountains as part of their

spring Outdoor School experience

for most students this was their first

experience skiing or snowboarding during

this trip students were given lessons

from the amazing staff at Anthony Lakes

Additionally the walawa Avalanche Center

gave a lesson on snow science safety and

Avalanche rescue

one student said their favorite part was

interacting with peers and learning new

skills like what to do in an avalanche

these outdoor schools also provide

various opportunities for students to

work through diverse team challenges in

order to build trust cooperation and

group cohesion among the students

when asked what her favorite part about

outdoor school was one student said I

would say my favorite part was learning

about fossils and how they were made

also getting to hang out with all the

schools

this unique outdoor school program gives

these students the opportunities to meet

learn and work alongside peers of their

own age and grade

opportunities that may readily exist in

Oregon's more urban areas but are not

necessarily common at these remote and

self-proclaimed Frontier schools

another student said I don't have a

least favorite part of the trip but if I

had to have one it would be leaving

with this grant funding 50 students from

the most remote and underserved portions

of our state are now accessing and

participating in an impactful outdoor

school experience

the OSU outdoor school program believes

in creating Equitable culturally

responsive and interdisciplinary Outdoor

School experiences for all students

across Oregon

every Community has its unique needs and

the OSU outdoor school program is

committed to continuing to collaborate

and work closely with Partners across

the state to provide an empowering and

inspiring learning experience for all

students

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Transcript

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The pandemic drastically changed what outdoor school looked like in 2020 however one positive of this is that it allowed outdoor school providers and sites to focus in on equity work in their programming the oregon state university extension service outdoor school program created two grants one of which we'll be talking about the equity diversity and inclusion grant which allowed outdoor school providers to look at equity in their programming curriculum and staff training we were High School Leadership Institute very excited about the opportunity to apply for the grant through osu extension because during the pandemic we recognized the need to engage with our high school students because we were unable to work with them during the 2021 school year through this grant we developed a high school leadership institute to connect high school students with each other and career professionals while focusing the institute to center the voice of students and communities of color throughout the experience

A lot of what we did was re-learn how to to be a part of a community and um to build relationships with each other to see people who look similar to you and who look different than you and learn to build relationships through difference and through commonalities so that they can learn to meet people where they're at we push them to look in and talk about their identity and how it affects the world around them the summer leadership institute was a program for them to be leaders in their school communities Conclusion i was excited about the proposal submitted by mesd for our equity diversity and inclusion grants it was really innovative and recognized that for high school students to participate many of them work during the summer and their incomes are important to their families so they made this program free for all participants and they even found a way to remove some barriers so that there could be a stipend offered to every high schooler every every student was also eligible for pcc college credits this program was a great success and it reflects the commitment of osu extension service outdoor school program and the mesd outdoor school to equity diversity inclusion and to seeking to serve marginalized peoples and just elevating and uplifting all people in our community

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All means all

In 2016, Oregon voters overwhelmingly passed legislation to fund outdoor school for ALL of Oregon’s 5th and 6th grade students. As a result of the legislation, the Oregon State University (OSU) Extension Service Outdoor School Program collaborated to create our mission and vision on a foundation of values of equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI). These values are essential to who we are and to what we do.

We lead with equity because equity acknowledges and addresses the histories and structured systems that keep underserved and underrepresented populations from necessary resources. Without equity, we cannot develop a truly diverse and inclusive community. Equity requires an acknowledgment that everyone has different needs, experiences, and opportunities. When we understand this, we allocate resources accordingly so everyone has access to the same outcomes.

Equity is the approach and equality is the desired outcome.

We acknowledge that historic and institutional barriers have kept youth from fully participating in outdoor school and that for many, particularly those from the dominant culture, these barriers are hard to see. We strive to foster positive experiences for all students by:

Working with our communities and partners to expose and eliminate institutional policies and structures that uphold systems of power and privilege.
Providing ongoing opportunities for education and self-reflection to our staff, outdoor school partners, and stakeholders.

Credit: Joe Klein (Cropped from original)

Interested in professional development?

Please reach out to Charissa V. Jones, the Outreach and Inclusion Coordinator, if you are interested in a consultation regarding how to fulfill your outdoor school program's equity, diversity, and inclusion efforts to support the success of all Oregon students.

Contact Charissa