Beyond the Industry Standard
An article on the Outdoor Leadership program at Columbia.
by Andrea Ykema
Sunsets on the beach, alpine slopes of untouched snow, the northern lights seen from a backcountry plateau – these are the classrooms of an Outdoor Leadership (OL) student at Columbia. In a program that is designed to combine technical outdoor skill with interpersonal skill, these stunning places become the lab of countless goal-oriented experiments. It is a program that requires its students to find the deepest places within themselves in order to thrive in a challenging group setting. It is a program that takes a student’s raw thirst for adventure and channels it into invaluable skills and training. And it is a program that encourages its students to encounter God in a vivid way.
“It’s my belief that God is known through Scripture, through our personal experience, and through that which He has created,” said Outdoor Leadership Director, Chris Dyck. “So [our program is about] engaging people in the outdoors, in that part of God’s creation that helps us understand who he is.” A second goal of the OL program is relational – not only does Columbia want to see its OL students engage God in a deeply profound way, but they desire to see the students engage each other with the same gravity and reverence. This is why a significant amount of OL classes are focused on developing interpersonal skills.
Chris commented about the course selection of the OL program, “We looked for coursework at Columbia that would compliment outdoor training and the skills and abilities that an outdoor leader would want to have or benefit from. So we chose things like anthropology, cross-cultural communications, environmental issues, conflict management and counseling. It’s a lot of interpersonal courses, which is very important, because outdoor leadership is very much a people-job… There’s also a theme of Biblical studies through the OL program, which is common to all programs at Columbia.”
During an OL student’s time at Columbia, they will receive fundamental training from experts in their field of choice – either aquatic, or alpine. Certifications are an important part of developing one’s resume for the outdoor industry, but they are certainly not the most important part. In fact, Chris estimated that approximately 60-70% of an OL student’s time at Columbia has direct implications for a guiding resume, while the average OL student receives only two to four certifications during the first two years of their studies. Chris explained the value of non-certification field time,
“I’m not sure that people understand the language of the outdoor profession – certification is certainly a big part of things, but an even bigger part of it is the qualification, the experience, the time in the field that the students are giving – that’s what is key here. Some certifications can be done in a weekend, or seven days... And people in industry know this, and they know that’s not all there is to being a guide and an outdoor leader. To come to a college like this – to spend two years or four years studying outdoor leadership – decision making, navigation, group management, critical thinking – those skills are invaluable. Certification is just the end result of all of that.”
Columbia understands what is critical to teach to their developing outdoor leaders, and this has reflected well in the industry. Graduates are securing jobs with Ground Search & Rescue, The Provincial Emergency Program, BC Parks, and Whistler-Blackcomb. Still others have pursued careers as outdoor educators, river guides, and camp employees.
“We are combining a high level of people-skill training with our outdoor skill training. The people we’re producing are not only technically skilled and competent in their field, but they’re also very good with people. And that stands out in the industry.”
For more information on the Outdoor Leadership program at Columbia Bible College, please visit our website at http://www.columbiabc.edu/academics/ol.html.
