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Wednesday, May 13, 2015 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
school counselor pilots wilderness program
By Sue Stafford
Correspondent
Sisters Outdoor Leadership
Experience (S.O.L.E.) is a
pilot wilderness program at
Sisters Middle School (SMS)
being developed by Brook
Jackson, mental-health coun-
selor at the school. S.O.L.E.
is similar to the middle school
outdoor science program, but
with a pro-social/emotional
emphasis.
Jackson, whose position
is funded by a mental-health
grant to the Sisters School
District, has a passion for
working with young people,
particularly for getting them
out into nature as a way to
help them explore who they
are and to discover and appre-
ciate the strengths they pos-
sess that don’t always show
up in the classroom.
I have gone through my
own struggles. Whenever
I need to find peace of
mind, I take my dogs and
go out into the woods.
— Brook Jackson
“I have gone through my
own struggles. Whenever I
need to find peace of mind, I
take my dogs and go out into
the woods,” Jackson said.
Amazing things can hap-
pen when you take students
who have been identified as
“at-risk” and allow them the
freedom and natural conse-
quences that nature provides.
“When you take these kids,
who often have a great deal of
Year-round
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emotional intensity, and place
them in an environment with
physical intensity, there is a
process that takes place caus-
ing the kids to bond in a way
not possible in ordinary sur-
roundings,” Jackson said.
He went on to explain,
“Incorporating a wilderness
component to support strug-
gling middle school students
provides an opportunity for
these students to develop new
skills and self-confidence,
leading to an increased sense
of hope, which is a key ingre-
dient to improving mental
health.”
The program is designed to
address the needs of some of
the 10 percent of the middle
school population (35) who
are receiving mental-health
support individually or in a
small group setting. Jackson is
currently running two groups
for eighth-grade boys, and it
is from these groups that the
students will come for the
S.O.L.E. program. Most of
these students are not receiv-
ing services through other
school programs. In mid-May
the boys will be taking a one-
day hike to the top of Black
Butte to prepare for their
weekend in the wilderness at
the end of May.
Jackson has received some
funds from the City of Sisters’
Community Services Grant
program, but he still needs
more donations, both mon-
etary and equipment. Just
the cost of the bus for the
one-day hike runs close to
$100. He is currently round-
ing up donated equipment
and recently received several
backpacks from Habitat for
Humanity. Jackson is hoping
to build 10 sets of basic back-
packing equipment, including
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adventure based,
experiential learning
allows children to
become more self-aware
and self-reflective, which
assists them in controlling
their behavior.
— Brook Jackson
The outings will be more
than just fun excursions.
Jackson will conduct pre- and
post-assessments on areas
such as self-esteem, empa-
thy, conflict resolution, and
anger and anxiety manage-
ment, using an empirically
researched assessment tool to
provide quantitative/qualita-
tive data and efficacy for this
type of program in a school.
During the outings, “hard”
skills of packing a backpack,
setting up shelter, leaving
no trace, cooking over a fire,
and fire safety will be taught.
Jackson shared why this type
of experience is valuable.
“Adventure-based, expe-
riential learning allows chil-
dren to become more self-
aware and self-reflective,
which assists them in con-
trolling their behavior, mak-
ing better decisions and being
less impulsive. This type of
program also helps them to
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backpacks, sleeping pads and
sleeping bags.
For anything that is
donated, Jackson plans to have
the students do service projects
in exchange so they can learn
the importance of working to
earn things and giving back.
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practice higher-level thinking
such as planning, organizing
and problem-solving. These
types of learning opportuni-
ties have positive benefits
in developing an internal
locus of control, leadership,
emotional growth, improved
self-esteem and interpersonal
relationships.”
Jackson worked for five
years in the wilderness therapy
industry as a wilderness guide
for the Catherine Freer School
in the Willamette Valley. He
led 21- to 30-day backpack-
ing and adventure-based
expeditions for at-risk teens.
While at Freer, he earned his
certification as a drug and
alcohol counselor. He also
has a current Wilderness First
Responder (WFR) medi-
cal certification, which is the
industry standard for wilder-
ness guides leading trips in the
backcountry.
After leaving Freer,
Jackson attended Oregon
State University – Cascades
and earned his master’s degree
in counseling, completing
coursework in both the men-
tal-health and school counsel-
ing tracks. The seed for the
S.O.L.E. program was planted
when Jackson did a graduate
adventure-counseling project
at OSU. He served as a coun-
seling intern last year at SMS
as part of his coursework.
Jackson’s dream for the
future of S.O.L.E. depends
on his position being funded
again next year. He would like
to eventually have the stu-
dents from this year’s program
return as mentors for future
students. Next year he would
like the students to participate
in the planning and organizing
process for the outings, which
wasn’t possible this year due
to the short time-frame.
To learn more about
S.O.L.E., or to make a dona-
tion to the program, contact
Brook Jackson, SMS, 541-
549-2099 or brook.jackson@
sistersk12.or.us.