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Who is Served

Equity begins with ensuring we can meet our student’s needs wherever they may be. For any student who may not have the necessary equipment or faces financial barriers, they will have the ability to access these funds through our "Impacts Grant" to help support their outdoor adventures.

Unfortunately we know that many of our students experience barriers as adventure can be costly. Between transportation, gear, and instruction we are always searching for more ways to engage the entire community as we believe everyone deserves access to the physical and social benefits that come from engaging in these positive life-long experiences.

The average cost to participate in our Excursions & WOOT programs ranges from $25-$700. We want to ensure that every student who wishes to get involved with our services has the opportunity to do so regardless of any financial barriers or lack of necessary equipment.

What is your Impact

With your donation you would be providing the chance for students who may not have otherwise ever been afforded opportunity to engage in one of the most unique and impactful experiences at Western.

This will kick off our “Impacts Grant” planting the seed and helping more student’s access opportunities to engage in outdoor recreation developing interpersonal and technical skills that last well beyond their time as a student.

All donors will be recognized on our Donation Page and receive a copy of our annual “Impacts Newsletter" with highlights of trips, student testimonials, and data showing that what we do truly has positive impacts on the Western Community.

Outdoor Center Excursions Program

In 1969 the Associated Students Outdoor Excursions Program was started by a small group students who were passionate about outdoor recreation and believed that exploring the Pacific Northwest together increased the sense of community by helping others learn and develop technical skills while sharing wilderness experiences together. These students wanted to create a space for anyone to join: “let us make the group part of the community, and not just part of the campus.” Today we continue to live out this vision as we strive to make adventure possible for anyone and everyone who wishes to get outside.

WOOT! WOOT!

In 2010 there was a new addition to the Outdoor Center family! Western Outdoor Orientation Trips, more commonly referred to as WOOT!, is a unique program designed to “support, enhance, and ease the transition into Western for first-year students through outdoor adventure.” What we see is that students who are able to participate in this program are retained at a greater level, more engaged with the Western community, and perform better academically. Our goal is to make this trip possible for any student who wishes to join regardless of barriers that they may have as we know that it will have a lasting impact on their Western Experience.