Who We Are

Dear Learners and Families:

We welcome your interest in the Expeditionary School at Black River. Our approach to Education is based on the Expeditionary Learning Model. While many of the learning opportunities are here in the traditional brick and mortar school, we will also take you out into the world on “learning expeditions”. Some people think this means climbing mountains, and it may, but we will invite you to be immersed in the community, and to be inquisitive about the world and your own interests.

We have a mixture of traditional classes in which we strive to incorporate the interests of you and your classmates. The goal of ESBR and its teachers is to encourage students’ interests, and to support each student’s academic strengths as well as academic challenges.As an ESBR student, you will be asked to create a Personal Learning Plan with your teachers and parents that reflects your interests, capabilities, and improvement of academic skills. We use multiple pathways to nurture and attain your personal goals. At ESBR, we use both the term courses and learning opportunities to create a culture of learning in which learning new skills anytime, anywhere is as important as traditional classroom learning. 

Students gain credits toward graduation from traditional classes, as well as Guided Independent Study, which may include out of school activities and/or employment. We use reflections, projects and documentation of your experiences and learning to determine academic credit.