The Blue Ridge School Character Education Program includes service-learning trips designed to encourage the boys to learn the benefits of community service and to gain a greater understanding and empathy for those less fortunate.

Character Education (CE) at Blue Ridge School adheres to our overall educational philosophy and to the best practices of teaching boys. CE should be experiential and relational in nature, occur in small groups, combine formal and informal methods, and appeal to all learning styles. We intersperse CE lessons throughout the academic year in a variety of ways. However, the three- to four-day trips enable us to condense CE into an immersive experience that encompasses all aspects of CE.

The 2017 trips took place this past week. Freshmen left on Saturday for Eagle’s Landing in the George Washington and Jefferson National Park for a five-day Wilderness Adventure trip that included wilderness-based challenges which encouraged teamwork, self-reliance, perseverance and resilience.

The sophomores partnered with the Youth Service Opportunities Project (YSOP) in Washington, D.C., where they performed urban service learning projects in the area. These projects gave our students a chance to experience and improve the lives of people living in urban poverty by preparing and serving meals, packing foods and spending time with senior citizens. At the YSOP Center, they prepared, served and ate a meal with people who are homeless. Click here for photos.

The junior class traveled to Oak Hill, West Virginia, for whitewater rafting and service with the Southern Appalachia Labor School (SALS). They began their trip on the New River in West Virginia, then headed to the Historic Oak Hill School where they performed service work for two days.