History of IslandWood

The inspiration for IslandWood came from the land itself, and the knowledge that half of the Seattle School District's children did not receive overnight outdoor education programs.

We learned in 1997 that over a thousand acres of land was being sold on the south end of Bainbridge Island by Port Blakely Tree Farms. Having walked the land and seen the beauty of it, we wanted to see it used for something other than a housing development. A few weeks later, I proposed to my husband Paul the idea of a children's outdoor education center. My idea was to take kids out of the built environment or urban areas, and allow them to live in the forest and learn about the natural and cultural history of the Puget Sound region.

From that idea a six-month feasibility study confirmed the need for such a facility. We learned that in 1990 Washington State declared that environmental education is mandatory-- yet no funding for teacher training, student programs, or facilities was ever allocated. Moreover, our feasibility study showed that roughly half of local school children had never participated in a residential outdoor education program-- or had even spent extended time outside the city.

Students arriving at IslandWood.

Two years of research followed, with community meetings involving over 2500 people. Focus groups conducted with teachers, scientists, artists, technologists and cultural historians supported the idea of expanding the educational programs to include weekend adult and family programs. Additionally, the teachers we talked to expressed a strong need for professional development opportunities in art, science and technology.

IslandWood's educational vision and philosophy was then confirmed by an educational research project called Closing the Achievement Gap. This study, funded by the Pew Charitable Trust, examined models of learning in children, and showed that by taking children outside the classroom-- by focusing on actively doing-- children's academic performance goes up in every discipline. This knowledge became the inspiration for our desire to have IslandWood become a model for hands-on learning.

At the end of 1998, IslandWood purchased 255-acres of the original 1100 acres of land from Port Blakely Tree Farms and through a land exchange with a Bainbridge Island housing developer. The planning then began in earnest with how to best create an educational center that could be a "magical place for kids."

Visits to over 25 existing outdoor education facilities in the United States helped to develop a best practices model based on facility design and programming. Visiting exemplary programs in several other states confirmed the decision to also offer a one-year residential graduate degree program on our campus.

Scientists and educators spent time on the property to discern what educational "stories" could be shared with children. Biologists were excited by the property's rich variety of ecosystems: 62 acres of wetlands, a bog, second growth forest, a stream, and access to a marine estuary park in Blakely Harbor, adjacent to the property.

Building and landscape architects designed the educational structures, trail system and outdoor field structures with the help of kids. University of Washington landscape architecture students worked with over 250 children in the 4th, 5th, and 6th grades to learn what their ideals would be for learning in the natural world. The children's ideas focused on adventure-based learning, with their design ideas generating specifics like a floating classroom, suspension bridge, forest canopy structure and several tree houses.

A student in one of the treehouses at IslandWood.

The official ground breaking for construction of the center was held in the summer of 2000. In September 2002, buildings were completed and educational day programs began.

Now IslandWood provides a complete outdoor classroom with its six distinct ecosystems—including a forest, cattail marsh, bog, stream, four-acre pond, and marine estuary.

Using the environment as a classroom, IslandWood's experienced naturalists, teaching faculty and graduate students offer a 3-part curriculum:

· Science-- focuses on the natural world, sustainability, energy creation and conservation, and gardening.
· Emerging Technologies-- permits students to use scientific research tools in measuring, documenting, collecting, interpreting, presenting, and managing data.
· Arts-- provides students with opportunities to interpret their experiences in the natural world through creative expression.

Operating from sustainably designed facilities, IslandWood expands the students' awareness of their environment by educating them about recycled materials, passive and active solar design, and energy and water-saving devices.

Now kids, adults, families, and teachers are currently using the land as a learning tool . . . and a team of incredible IslandWood faculty, naturalists and graduate students have made what was once a vision actually come to life!

About the author

Debbi Brainerd

Debbi Brainerd is the Founder and Chairperson of IslandWood. After a 12-year career in special events and community relations at Nordstrom, she completed a B.S. in molecular and cell biology at the University of Washington. Visit IslandWood's website at www.islandwood.org.

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