Academic Courses

This 8-week course is designed to introduce the basic skills of outdoor survival and challenge students to explore their comfort zone in a way that reiterates the importance of camaraderie, health, and wellness. Through experiential learning, this course covers survival shelter construction, water location and purification, friction fire making, hunting techniques, and wild edible plants. Class meets 1 evening a week for 8 weeks and has a mandatory weekend field experience leaving on Friday, returning Sunday. Students will be camping for 2 nights with minimal equipment. Essential gear, food, and transportation are provided.

This course is designed to teach the foundational skills of backpacking. Students will acquire knowledge of backcountry camping, including proper equipment selection, use of a topographic map, water purification, campsite selection, and Leave No Trace ethics. This course is highly experiential throughout. You will be responsible for carrying a backpack of personal and group gear (30 lbs or more) on uneven terrain and may be exposed to inclement weather. This class spans a period of 3 weeks with 2 evening classroom sessions and one mandatory weekend field experience in Hoosier National Forest. The field experience departs on Friday and returns on Sunday. Students will be camping for 2 nights. Essential gear, food, and transportation are provided.

This 8-week hybrid course is designed to disconnect students from technology and reconnect with the great outdoors. Students learn tools to bring more peace, relaxation, and calmness into their life. This course includes but is not limited to hiking, yoga, breathing exercises, and meditations. The hybrid model consists of online, asynchronous content and a single day, in-person field experience. Canvas assignments will be completed through videos with some independent outdoor activities. The field experience will take place on a Saturday at Yellowwood State Forest. This course does not have an overnight camping component. Transportation is provided

This course is designed to introduce the basics of Wilderness Emergency Medicine. Classroom instruction will be followed by scenarios conducted outside the classroom. Content includes response to environmental emergencies, soft tissue & musculoskeletal injuries, and patient assessment & care. About a third of this class will be held outdoors practicing wilderness first aid skills in scenarios. Successful completion of this course results in a Wilderness First Aid Certification (3-year). This course takes place over 2 days, Saturday/Sunday, and meets in-person at the IU Research and Teaching Preserve.

This course prepares students for national certification as a Search and Rescue (SAR) Tech II according to the National Association of Search and Rescue. Content includes topics in 3 major areas: survival & support, search, and rescue. Course provides practical experience during simulated search and rescue operations during day/evening scenarios. This course takes place over 2 weekends, Friday-Sunday. Students will meet in the classroom both Fridays at the IU Research and Teaching Preserve. Saturdays and Sundays will encompass hands-on outdoor learning, of which the second weekend will travel to the Hoosier National Forest for a mandatory overnight camping component.

This course is designed to introduce the foundational knowledge and techniques of mountain biking. Modeled on the International Biking Association (IMBA) rules of the trail, students will learn proper trail use and the fundamentals of riding a bike off-road. Students participate through classroom and experiential learning as well as through demonstrating new skills. This class spans a period of 3 weeks with 2 evening classroom sessions and 1 mandatory weekend field experience. The field experience takes place on Saturday and Sunday in Brown County State Park or surrounding areas. This course does not have an overnight camping component. Bikes, essential gear, and transportation are provided.

This course is designed to teach the foundational skills of canoeing. Students will learn the basics of canoeing including paddle strokes, essential maneuvers, basic canoe rescues, navigation, and Leave No Trace ethics. This course is highly experiential throughout. You will be required to paddle a canoe over a distance on open water with the potential for inclement weather. This class spans a period of 3 weeks with 2 evening classroom sessions and 1 mandatory weekend field experience on Lake Monroe or surrounding areas. The field experience departs on Saturday and returns on Sunday. Students will be camping for 1 night. Essential gear, food, and transportation are provided.

This course is designed to introduce the essential techniques required for whitewater rafting. Students will be introduced to topics including rafting strategies and tactics, water safety, river dynamics, and relevant whitewater rafting equipment. This course is highly experiential throughout. Anticipate exposure to cold water. This class spans a period of 3 weeks with 2 evening classroom sessions and 1 mandatory weekend field experience outside of Indiana. The field experience departs on Friday and returns on Sunday. Students will be camping for 2 nights. Essential gear, food, and transportation are provided.

This course is designed to introduce the essential techniques required for whitewater kayaking. Students will learn the basics of whitewater kayaking including paddle strokes, essential maneuvers, wet exits, basic kayak rescues, navigation, equipment, river dynamics, safety planning, and Leave No Trace ethics. This course is highly experiential throughout. Anticipate exposure to cold water. Personal comfort in and around water as well as comfort in compact spaces should be considered. This class spans a period of 3 weeks with 2 evening classroom sessions and 1 mandatory weekend field experience outside of Indiana. The field experience departs on Friday and returns on Sunday. Students will be camping for 2 nights. Essential gear, food, and transportation are provided. Enrolling in SPH-W 136 or SPH-W 132 prior to taking this course is strongly encouraged.

This course is designed to introduce the essential techniques required for coastal kayaking. Students will learn the basics of coastal kayaking including paddle strokes, essential maneuvers, wet exits, basic kayak rescues, navigation, equipment, safety planning and Leave No Trace ethics. This course is highly experiential throughout. You will be required to paddle a kayak over a distance on open water with a potential for inclement weather. This class spans a period of 3 weeks with 2 evening classroom sessions and 1 mandatory weekend field experience on Lake Monroe or surrounding areas. The field experience departs on Saturday and returns on Sunday. Students will be camping for 1 night. Essential gear, food, and transportation are provided.

This course is designed to introduce and improve upon the techniques of downhill skiing and is open to all experience levels. This class meets 1 evening per week for 3 weeks. Transportation is provided to Paoli Peaks Ski Resort in Paoli, Indiana. Lessons for beginners and intermediate skiers will be taught by Paoli Peaks instructors. Lift tickets and ski rentals are included in this course. There will be additional time outside of lessons to ski independently.

This course is designed to introduce the essential techniques of ice climbing. Students will learn the basics of belaying that maximize safety, gear selection, general movement on ice, rock/snow, and perfecting hand & foot placements. This course is highly experiential throughout and there may be exposure to inclement weather. This class spans a period of 3 weeks with 2 evening classroom sessions and 1 mandatory weekend field experience outside of Indiana. The field experience departs on Friday and returns on Sunday. Students will be camping for 2 nights in an indoor facility that may not have heat. Essential gear, food and transportation are provided.

This course is designed to introduce the essential techniques of outdoor rock climbing. Students will learn the basics of belaying that maximize safety, gear selection, general movement on rock, and perfecting hand and foot placements. This course is highly experiential throughout and there may be exposure to inclement weather. You will be responsible for carrying personal and group gear on uneven terrain. This class spans a period of 3 weeks with 2 evening classroom sessions and one mandatory weekend field experience outside of Indiana. The field experience departs on Friday and returns on Sunday. Students will be camping for 2 nights. Essential gear, food, and transportation are provided.

This eight-week course introduces the foundations of outdoor adventure leadership, including an introduction to the core competencies of outdoor living skills, education, leadership, risk management, environmental integration, and planning & logistics. The course emphasizes backcountry leadership and judgement with a broad overview of the relevant theories and practices of the outdoor adventure industry. Teaching processes include lecture, discussion, group projects, peer teaching experiences, practical skills sessions, and expeditionary learning. This course is highly experiential throughout. You will be responsible for carrying a backpack of personal and group gear (30 lbs or more) on uneven terrain and may be exposed to inclement weather. This course meets in a classroom 2 evenings per week in addition to 2 mandatory weekend field experiences in Hoosier National Forest. Each field experience departs on Friday and returns on Sunday. Students will be camping for 2 nights per experience. Essential gear, food and transportation are provided.

The Wilderness First Responder (WFR) course is the most widely accepted standard in wilderness medical care for professional outdoor leaders. The SOLO Wilderness Medicine curriculum uses the principles of long-term care, improvised resources, and varying environmental conditions as the framework for learning. The course takes an in-depth look at the underlying physiology of common and uncommon emergencies that might be encountered in the wilderness context. The primary components of the course include personal/group safety, anatomy and physiology, patient assessment, documentation, trauma medical emergencies, environmental emergencies, long-term care, teamwork, organizing/improvising rescues, decision-making, leadership, judgment, and prevention. Teaching and learning processes during this course include lecture and discussion, case studies, practical skill sessions, scenarios, and rescue simulations. Both indoor and outdoor classrooms are used. Be prepared to spend time outside with the potential to be exposed to inclement weather. Class meets 2 evenings per week for 8 weeks at the IU Research and Teaching Preserve.