Whitewater rafting, hiking, camping and rock climbing in West Virginia were on the docket this month for 64 incoming first-year students as part of Adventures in Leadership, a summer experience for rising freshmen sponsored by the Center for Leadership and Campus Recreation.
The students explored leadership topics through interaction with other participants and the outdoors during the programs held July 10-15 and July 17-22.
Upon arriving on campus, the participants learned about their leadership styles, toured their residence hall, and engaged in activities on the Elon Challenge low-ropes course. The program then shifted to Minden, WV, where the students spent the day rock climbing and hiking to the edge of the New River gorge with beautiful vistas of the New River Gorge Bridge. All the team building activities brought the students together for a final two-day white water raft down the New River.
The incoming students were led by nine student facilitators: Mary Rebecca Anderson ‘12, Sarah Carter ‘14, Maria Castine ‘14, Tess Duncan ‘14, Mackenzie Meyer ‘14, Emily Niedhardt ‘13, Nick Rourke ‘14, Lily Siegel ‘14 and George Weschler ‘14. Facilitators were selected last fall and completed a semesters’ worth of training in group dynamics, understanding differences, team-building and first aid.
The facilitators also went on a pre-trip to West Virginia in April to experience the trip before facilitating it this summer.
Staff members Steve Mencarini, director of the Center for Leadership, and Bethany Massman, assistant director of Campus Recreation, served as advisors of the program. Faculty members Carol Smith, associate professor of Health and Human Performance, and Phil Miller, lecturer in Human Service Studies, also accompanied the trip and facilitated a discussion on academics at Elon.