Paired with:

Entrepreneurship

Ski Business

English/Journalism

Environmental Science

Psychology

Students will learn leadership skills including competence, self–awareness, self-reliance, tolerance for adversity and uncertainty, communication, judgment, decision-making, respect, vision, and action. This is done through practical experience and timely feedback. Our graduates are theoretically and technically competent outdoor specialists who can apply their skills as leaders to diverse groups and environments in a world with a growing population and finite wilderness resources.Leadership skills are invaluable for everyday life and a great way to learn and practice them is in an outdoor educational environment.

These interdisciplinary majors require a core progression of Outdoor Adventure Leadership courses blended with another discipline (Entrepreneurship, Ski Business and Resort Management, Psychology, English/Journalism, or Environmental Science). In a unique liberal arts experience, students incorporate leadership training and outdoor skills with a specialization in another academic department.

 Outdoor Adventure Leadership majors will:

1. Demonstrate a skills-based knowledge, a working vocabulary, and a conceptual understanding of theoretical foundations in adventure education experiences.
2. Employ a variety of experiential leadership styles, teaching progressions, and interpersonal communication skills to specific leadership settings.
3. Assess good judgment and risk management in wilderness settings using wilderness first-aid skills and organizational protocols and policies.
4. Define and evaluate the current and historical issues involved around wilderness ethics.
5. Identify the management protocols for land use at the local, state, and national levels.
6. Demonstrate awareness of interdisciplinary links between outdoor adventure leadership and the particular discipline (Entrepreneurship, Environmental Science, English/Journalism, or Psychology), both conceptually and in practice.

Student Quotes:

Being in nature brings us to a very basic fundamental way of operation: be optimistic, resourceful, and THRIVE, or, be pessimistic, closed down, and FLOUNDER.
Beau Kissler

One thing I’ve learned about living well is that adventure, exploration and understanding are just as important as air and food. ODAL reminded me of that. It brought back my childlike curiosity and let me play again. Though I don’t collect worms or pretend to be a dog anymore, I’m having fun while learning outdoors. This is my education. It’s only a couple classes a semester, but one day I’ll be able to escape the classrooms and cubicles forever. The outdoors will be my office; the wilderness will be my home.
Savannah Hoover

A year after I completed my interdisciplinary major of outdoor adventure leadership and journalism, I now call myself a freelance filmmaker. Based mostly in the action sports industry, I have transferred many of the crucial skills learned from the ODAL program into what I do now. While my role as a videographer may be slightly different than what I did as an instructor in the outdoor industry, the tools acquired are invaluable to my current job. Whether it is bringing a film crew into the backcountry or simply facilitating an idea to a specific rider, I owe a great deal of what I know to what I gained from Sierra Nevada College.
Ben Bishop ’10

• Ben’s recent video features pro skier Kaya Turski.

Degree Requirements

Outdoor Adventure Leadership Requirements		CREDITS
ODAL 101	Introduction to Outdoor Skills	4
ODAL 201	Principles of Outdoor Leadership	3
ODAL 250	Wilderness First Responder	3
PHED/ODAL	Choose either ODAL 350, 302 or PHED 229, 235, 240, 253, 345.	3*
ODAL 301	Fundamentals of Environmental Interpretation	3
ODAL 380	Extended Field Expedition: Leadership Practicum	3
ODAL 401	Wilderness Ethics	3
Total Outdoor Adventure Leadership		22

Interdisciplinary Studies Requirements
INTD 250	Principles of Interdisciplinary Studies	3
INTD 300	Service Learning	3
INTD 493	Senior Portfolio	3
Total Interdisciplinary Studies		9
*One unit may be satisfied by General Education PHED Core Requirement.
Choose one area to integrate with Outdoor Adventure Leadership from the following:
ENGLISH (Leading towards requirements for the MAT/ Teaching Program)		CREDITS
ENGL 240	Introduction to Journalism	3
ENGL 250	Introduction to Shakespeare	3
ENGL 295	Intro to Literary Criticism	3
ENGL 326	Early American Literature	3
ENGL 327	Contemporary American Literature	3
ENGL 3XX	Upper Division World Lit (330, 384, 455)	3
ENGL 350 or 351	Shakespeare’s Tragedies or Comedies	3
ENGL 381	Language Thought and Culture	3
ENGL 435 or 436	British Literature	3
ENGL 204, 290, 304, 307, 390	Advanced Composition or Advanced Journalism	3
COMM 211	Communications or other Speech course approved with advisor	3
ENGL 411	Descriptive Grammar	3
Total English		36

ENGLISH/CREATIVE WRITING
ENGL 205	Introduction to Creative Writing Workshop	3
ENGL 295	Introduction to Literary Criticism	3
ENGL 204, 206, 210,288, 295	Lower division creative writing choices: Choose 3	9
ENGL 304,305,306,307,388	Upper division creative writing choices: Choose 3	9
ENGL326, 327, 328, 329	Early or Contemporary American Literature or Early or Contemporary British Literature	3
Upper Division ENGL Literature choice	Consult with advisor	3
HUMN 493, ENGL 493	Senior Project: Thesis or (depending on choice for INTD 493) professional practices, or upper division writing course, determined with advisor.	3
Total English/Creative Writing Credits		33

ENGLISH/JOURNALISM
ENGL 204	Introduction to Creative Non-fiction Workshop	3
ENGL 240	Introduction to Journalism	3
ENGL 340	Journalism Workshop	3
ENGL 345	Journalism Workshop: Eagle’s Eye Editors	3
ENGL 375 or DART 305	Intermediate Multimedia Journalism Workshop or Web Design	3
ENGL 440	Journalism Workshop II	3
DART, PHTG	Pick one strand of Beginning to Intermediate courses: Digital Darkroom, Video Practices, Photography or Photojournalism	6
Upper Division Elective	With advisor, choose 2: ENGL 445 Advanced Editing, ENGL 304 Intermediate Creative Nonfiction or , ENGL 307 Travel and Adventure Writing; BLAW 410 Intellectual Property, UD INTL course ex INTL 420 International Terrorism and the Peace Process or INTL 480 Regional Studies, ENGL 370 or Dart 305	6
BLAW 240	Media Law and Ethics	3
Total English/Journalism Credits		33

ENTREPRENEURSHIP		CREDITS
ACCT 204	Financial Accounting	3
ECON 102	Macroeconomics	3
GBUS 291	Business Communications	3
MGMT 260	Principles of Management	3
MKTG 201	Introduction to Marketing	3
ENTP 313	Creating ENT Ventures/ Social Ventures	3
INTB 320	Global Business Environment	3
ENTP 320	Financing Entrepreneur Ventures	3
BLAW 360	Business Law	3
ENTP 455	Capstone in Entrepreneurship	3
Total Entrepreneurship		30

ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE		CREDITS
BIOL 381/385, BIOL 421/425, BIOL 420, BIOL 386	Ecology & Lab, Aquatic Ecology & Lab, Tropical Field Biology, or Intertidal Ecology of Central Pacific Coast	3-4
ESCI 101/105, ESCI 301/305, ESCI 311/315, ESCI 420	Geology and Lab, Hydrology and Water Resources & Lab, Soils & Lab, or Geology of Death Valley and the Eastern Sierra	3-4
ASTR 121, BIOL 101/105, CHEM 101/105, PHYS 101/105	The Art and Science of Modern Astronomy (3 credits), Biology I & Lab, Chemistry I & Lab; or Physics I & Lab	3-4
ENVS, ESCI, BIOL	Choose 3 field courses: Lake Tahoe Basin Ecosystems (BIOL 357), Desert and Montane Ecosystems (BIOL 358) and other BIOL FIELD courses: 356,357, 359, 386, 420	9
ENVS 353, BIOL301/305, ENVS 421/425, ENVS 355/356	Alternative Energy, Animal Behavior & Lab, or Geographic Information Systems, or Environmental Engineering & Lab	3-4
BIOL 407	Conservation Biology	3
Elective ASTR/BIOL/CHEM/ ENVS/ESCI/PHYS/SUST course		Consult with advisor
EDUC 460	Introduction to Education & Educational Research or Internship or other course chosen in consultation with advisor	3
Total Environmental Science		30-35
* Students interested in applying to a MAT Teaching program must consult with their undergraduate advisor and MAT faculty.

CREDITS

PSYCHOLOGY
PSYC 101	Introduction to Psychology	3
PSYC 202	Human Development	3
PSYC 240	Social Psychology	3
PSYC 291	Introduction to APA Style	2
PSYC 322	Counseling and Clinical Psychology	3
PSYC 331	Adventure Therapy	3
PSYC 370	Learning Theory and Cognitive Psychology	3
PSYC 371	Abnormal Psychology	3
PSYC 415	Research Methods	4
PSYC 450	Capstone in Psychology	3
MATH 251	Statistics	4
Additional (3-4) courses suggested for a Psychology graduate school track include PSYC 325, PSYC 445 and a choice between PSYC electives (301, 303, 304, 330, 335, 351, 365, 425, 441)
Total Psychology		34

CREDITS

SKI BUSINESS AND RESORT MANAGEMENT
ACCT 204	Financial Accounting	3
ECON 102	Macroeconomics	3
GBUS 291	Business Communications	3
MGMT 260	Principles of Management	3
SBRM 215	Introduction to Ski Business	3
SBRM 325	Resort Profit Center Management	3
SBRM 330	Resort Marketing and Sales	3
SBRM 450	Resort Real Estate Development	3
SBRM 460	Resort General Management	3
SBRM 475	Capstone: Resort Master Planning	3
Total Ski Business and Resort Management		30

Outdoor Adventure Leadership and additional discipline:
Total Core Requirements		30
Total Outdoor Adventure Leadership Requirements		22
Total Interdisciplinary Studies Requirements		9
Total additional discipline requirements:
English		36
English/ Creative Writing		33
English Journalism		36
Entrepreneurship		30
Environmental Science		30
Psychology		34
Ski Business		30
Total Discipline Requirements		61-67
Electives		29-23
Total Degree Requirements		120

*Requirements listed above are based off the 2012-2013 Catalog, for other information check past catalogs or graduation requirements.