For 114 new UWC-USA students, getting to know their classmates meant stepping away from campus and into the ridges and river valleys of Northern New Mexico. Together, they discovered that building a community sometimes starts with sharing a trail.
The school’s Orientation Wilderness Expeditions brought first-year students into 12 groups for two nights and three days of hiking, guided by second-year Wilderness Leaders.
“Led by our Second Year Wilderness Leaders, our Orientation Wilderness Expeditions are a meaningful way for First Years to get to know each other and the landscape of Northern New Mexico,” said Abby Sussman, UWC-USA’s Wilderness and Outdoor Education Manager.
For students arriving from different countries and cultures, the experience offered an early opportunity to practice cooperation and discover common ground.
“People supported each other like a warm community, there were lots of these moments throughout the days,” one first-year student reflected. Another described how the group grew closer: “We really worked past our differences and disagreements and ended up becoming very close.”
Those experiences reflect a longstanding purpose of wilderness education at UWC-USA: helping young people discover their resilience while learning that success depends on one another. Rooted in educational founder Kurt Hahn’s emphasis on learning through experience, the expeditions bring the school’s commitment to understanding across differences into daily practice.
“When students learn to rely on one another and work together in the wilderness, they start to understand that building a more peaceful and sustainable world is a shared responsibility,” said UWC-USA President Andrew Mahlstedt. “The small communities they build while on these expeditions feed into the community we work so hard to foster here on campus. Wilderness Orientation Expeditions are a pivotal piece of our school culture and community.”
The landscape also left its impression, with students celebrating colorful trees, sunsets and stars. For some, the second-year leaders offered a glimpse of who they might become. “I loved and admired our leaders and they inspired me to think about becoming a wilderness leader,” one student said.