Camp Ondessonk Partners with Vienna High School Construction Class to Foster Career Readiness and Character Development
By Dr. Evan Coulson
Camp Ondessonk continues to work closely with Vienna High School (VHS) to provide local students with valuable experiential and applied learning opportunities through after-school clubs, at-school programming, and Camp-based events and initiatives. This collaborative partnership is strategically rooted in Camp’s mission of providing “Exceptional outdoor and spiritual adventures empowering kids of all ages” and aligns with our core philosophy, which emphasizes experiential education and the belief that service to others builds essential character strengths. By working together with VHS, we offer students unique opportunities for enrichment and engagement while promoting their overall mental, physical, and social well-being.
A strong example of this partnership is our current collaboration with the VHS Construction class, whose students are actively engaged on-site up to four mornings a week this fall. Under the mentorship of their teacher and Camp staff, including the Camp Rangers and executive leadership, they are tackling critical infrastructure projects. These efforts include refurbishing Original Dining Hall tables, rebuilding outhouses, framing a new Ground-Based Initiatives (GBI) shed, and rebuilding ground infrastructure at our Challenge Courses.
This initiative provides mutual benefits: Students further develop valuable trades skills in a supportive outdoor environment, experiencing the satisfaction of service and cultivating the ethic that “many hands make light work.” Furthermore, this outdoor engagement provides significant benefits, including stress reduction and a sense of belonging as well as fosters essential character strengths like resilience and teamwork. For Camp Ondessonk, this partnership results in the completion of much-needed maintenance, effectively demonstrating the benefit of service-learning in action.
Ultimately, this partnership illustrates an applied extension of our mission: empowering youth through exceptional outdoor adventures in service and learning. For the Construction students, it offers a chance to gain valuable skills and develop a service ethic by applying their classroom knowledge to meet real-world needs. More broadly, our collaboration with VHS provides regional high school students with access to meaningful engagement and experiential learning which enhances career readiness, supports overall wellness, and cultivates a lasting commitment to serving others.
Click here to learn more about Camp Ondessonk’s Outdoor Education Programs.
