The Outdoor Student Leader Scholarship is available to high school seniors who will have attended Outdoor School at least three times by the end of their senior year.
Application deadline for the 2025 Student Leader Scholarship:
11:59 pm March 21, 2025
This scholarship is available to those high school students (seniors) who have participated at MESD Outdoor School as Student Leaders. Each applicant must have been a Student Leader three times at Outdoor School by the end of their senior year. This is an opportunity for those leaders to be rewarded for their outstanding involvement in the Outdoor School program. The scholarship may be used toward any continuing education, such as college, university, community college, business school, trade school, vocational preparation program, etc.
Application Deadline: March 21, 2025
Please read the details of the scholarship application below. Make sure you have everything you need before beginning the electronic application. Each document may be mailed to us, or scanned and e-mailed, or sent as a (clear) photo via text.
Applications with missing elements by the deadline will not be eligible for the scholarship.
To complete this application, you will need:
Your personal information
Where and when you served as a Student Leader
Optional demographic / family / activity information
Project proposal (see requirements below)
2 letters of recommendation (see requirements below)
Be prepared to indicate where (which site) you served as a Student Leader for each session you were eligible. The Outdoor School office will include information from your Student Leader evaluations with your application materials given to the Scholarship Committee.
The MESD Outdoor School program recognizes that systemic oppression has limited access to higher education for members of marginalized communities. As such, special consideration is given to underrepresented groups and students experiencing hardship. Answers to these optional questions will only be used to positively influence the applicant's chances of becoming a finalist. Question topics include:
Applicants will produce an original creative project to answer a question.
Your project will then be presented in person to the Scholarship Committee. The presentation of your creation may include reading it aloud (essay, story, poem), performing the piece (theatrical scene, musical piece), presentation on a screen (power point, website, video, slideshow), or discussing an object (art piece, model, diorama, robot). Your presentation will be 5-7 minutes in length, followed by questions from the Scholarship Committee.
The Scholarship Committee will evaluate your project and presentation on the following criteria:
Did the creation effectively answer the question?
Did the creation and presentation demonstrate who you are?
Did the applicant show care and honesty through the creation and presentation?
Additional criteria may also be used.
The Question:
How was (were) your ___________________ affected by your time at Outdoor School?
Choose a word or phrase to fill in the blank above. For example, if you choose "problem-solving skills," the question your creation must address is "How were your problem-solving skills affected by your time at Outdoor School?"
Options:
community impact efforts
confidence
conservation
empathy
engagement / effort in school
ethical responsibility
family involvement
interest in science
interest in the outdoors
mentorship skills
motivation to volunteer
perseverance
problem-solving skills
relationship skills
responsible decision-making
self-awareness
self-management
social awareness
teaching skills
understanding of equity or social justice
other
The Creation Format:
Choose the format your creation will take. You may choose "other" and develop your own way to answer the question above, but remember that you must be able to present your creation to the Scholarship Committee in a room inside the MESD (a screen and projection equipment are available if needed) or immediately outside the building.
Options:
2- or 3-dimensional piece of art (drawing, painting, sculpture, collage, etc.)
Diorama or Model
Fiction or Non-Fiction Story
Musical Piece (with or without lyrics)
Poetry
Prezi or PowerPoint
Robotics / Electronics
Science Lesson
Scrap Book
Single Photo or Photo Essay / Slideshow
Theatrical Monologue
Video
Website
Written Essay
Other
If you need to acquire photos, video footage, or other items during a week of Outdoor School, please contact your Site Supervisor to arrange it. This may include requesting time away from field study, or visiting a site when it is not your assigned week. If your project includes recognizable faces or names, it may not be published, posted electronically, or presented outside of the Scholarship Committee presentation room without specific permissions from the recognizable people and / or their parents / guardians.
The electronic application will ask you to briefly describe your project. The application is due by March 21, 2025 but the project itself does not have to be finished until your assigned presentation date.
Your presentation will take place on Sunday, May 4th or Wednesday, May 7th at the MESD. If you cannot present in person on either date, a remote presentation method can be made available (such as Zoom).
The Publicity Release Information form must be signed by the applicant, and must also be signed by a parent or guardian if the applicant is under 18 years of age at the time of the application submission. Form can be scanned or photographed and uploaded with your electronic application, or it can be submitted separately via e-mail or U.S. mail.
Finalists will be notified within two weeks after all presentations have occurred. Finalists and their families and friends are invited to the Friends of Outdoor School Student Leader Scholarship Awards Ceremony and Dessert event.
This scholarship is intended to be used within two years of receiving the award. It will be paid directly to the school / program you are planning to attend.
If you have questions, please call (503) 257-1600.
The Student Leader Scholarship Committee is a panel of 4-6 current and former outdoor school staff; 6th grade, and high school teachers and administrators; community leaders; and representatives from our partners.
Committee members view all scholarship project presentations and review applications. The scores are compiled and used to determine the scholarship finalists. Finalists and their families and friends are invited to the Scholarship Dessert event, where the winners are announced.
The Student Leader Scholarship Committee considers the pool of applicants and the total available funds collected for the year to determine each scholarship award. The amount can vary from year to year and from recipient to recipient, but each scholarship typically falls within the $500 - $1000 range.
Funding for this scholarship is collected and disbursed by Friends of Outdoor School. Funds come from direct donations, profits from sale of Outdoor School merchandise, and from registration fees and sponsorship of the annual ODS Staff Golf Tournament fundraiser.
Purchase Outdoor School merchandise at the MESD
The Outdoor School office at the MESD offers t-shirts, sweatshirts, water bottles, watches, stickers, and patches in limited colors and sizes. The store is open during times when Student Leaders are typically coming in and out of the building: workshop Friday afternoon, workshop Saturday afternoon, Sundays and Mondays at the beginnings of ODS weeks, and Friday afternoons at the ends of ODS weeks. If you would like to purchase merchandise at another time, just give us a call or send us an e-mail and we can arrange a time to help you with your purchase. 100% of profits from merchandise sales go toward Student Leader scholarships.
Purchase Outdoor School merchandise online
Our online shop also has apparel, mugs, stickers, phone cases, journals, and more in many different styles, colors and sizes. Items are printed after you order, and shipped directly to you. 100% of profits from online sales go toward Student Leader scholarships.
Donate directly to Friends of Outdoor School Friends of Outdoor School works tirelessly to secure funding for MESD Outdoor School as well as other residential environmental education programs throughout the state. You can make a general donation to Friends of Outdoor School, or you can specify in the comments area that you would like some or all of your donation to go toward the MESD ODS Scholarship Fund.
Sponsor an ODS Staff golf team
Current and past ODS staff members form golf teams of 3-6 members to compete in the annual spring ODS Staff Golf Tournament. Despite what the name implies, this tournament is not about golf. We do attempt to play golf, but teams really compete for team unity, best costumes, and most funds raised.
100% of tournament registration fees paid by staff and all donations and team sponsorships collected for this event go toward Student Leader scholarships.
For a week or two prior to the tournament, you can donate to a specific team. Contact your favorite staff members and ask them how to donate to their team to help them win bragging rights!
Design a t-shirt!
Even if you don't have money to spare, you can help out the Student Leader scholarship fund by offering your time and art skills (or even just your ideas)! Several of the designs in our online shop were created by current and former Student Leaders and staff.
Donate your ODS themed art to our repertoire of available designs. A great design will entice others to purchase items featuring that design, and profits from those purchases go toward the Student Leader scholarship fund. Not all art works well for merchandise, but we would love to consider yours! If you have an idea for a design, but lack art skills, tell us about your idea. We may be able to make it a reality anyway.
