HPER school offers outdoor recreation class

Today is the last day to sign up for the Conservation and Outdoor Recreation Education program, but a few spots will remain until Nov. 17. \nStudents do not have to be School of Health, Physical Education and Recreation majors to register. CORE, which is run through the School of HPER, is a 17-credit, semester-long outdoor trek that encompasses seven courses. Graduate students can complete the program for a maximum of 12 credits.\nThe primary goal is to develop skills in leadership, outdoor activities and teamwork in various natural environments such as caves, rivers, forests and mountains, according to the CORE Web site. Participants are given challenges to complete in groups during their stays in each location, according to the CORE's spring semester pamphlet.\nCoordinator Amy Shellman said program participants will benefit from their experiences.\n"We provide students with an academic background, and they are given the opportunity to put what they learn to use in a natural environment," she said.\nEach CORE student must pay $1,700, according to the Web site. This amount covers housing, food, travel expenses and teaching materials, but does not go toward textbooks or basic supplies and equipment. There is also a chance participants will have to cover miscellaneous costs during their CORE tenure.\nBesides learning basic outdoor skills, students will train for a Wilderness First Responder certificate and a basic camp director course certificate from the American Camping Association, the pamphlet said. The syllabus includes a three-week expedition, written in-depth assignments and leadership education in rock climbing, spelunking, canyoneering, canoeing and mountaineering.\nSenior Tonia Slain, a CORE alumna, said she enjoyed the social experiences that stemmed from working with her group, as well as the program's hands-on learning approach.\n"In performing your missions, you are making friends and learning how to interact with other people ... you can sit in a classroom and be told how to do things, but unless you actually do them, you can't honestly say that you've learned them."\nProfessor Alan Ewert, the faculty supervisor, said, "CORE students usually report back that they have undergone personal growth and development and have learned very valuable group management skills and specific knowledge for managing groups in an outdoor setting."\nApplications are outside HPER Room 147 on the CORE bulletin board and in HPER Room 133. They must be returned by Nov. 17, but available openings are expected to fill quickly. More information is available at CORE's Web site, www.indiana.edu/~core.