The Character of Home ®
Wilderness Instruction and Leadership Development or W.I.L.D. is an exciting program that combines the classroom with the outdoors. W.I.L.D. is an academic class that includes book discussions about camping and leadership.
The class also uses experience gained from the outdoors and Outerlimits activities such as camping, canoeing, backpacking, rock climbing, and multiple others to teach the skills needed to attend and to lead trips into the wilderness.
Students gain skills needed to take trips into the wilderness and build confidence to lead others on adventures as part of Webb's unique Outdoor Program. Classroom instruction and outdoor trips combine to provide students hands-on experience.
Many students develop a love of nature and the outdoors at Webb and make it a lifelong passion. Along with weekend group trips throughout the year, Winter Freeze and Spring Break adventures test students’ skills.
Along with weekend group trips throughout the year, Winter Freeze and Spring Break adventures test students’ skills. Senior Survival, a weeklong backpacking trip ending the day before graduation, is the final bonding experience for each class that makes lasting memories.
The W.I.L.D. program offers trips to the whole student body ranging from daytrips to 6-day excursions and includes activities such as rock climbing, caving, kayaking, canoeing, and backpacking. We also provide a series of class trips starting in 6th grade that are outdoor based, team-building type experiences aimed at promoting a greater sense of what the Webb community is all about and create shared memories and opportunities to come together in a positive and cohesive way as a student body.
Our extensive gear collection ensures these trips and experiences are accessible to everyone. Our ultimate goal with these trips is to instill courage, self-discovery, self-reliance, and grit to seek adventure and push comfort limits in order to hone critical thinking skills, problem-solving strategies, and resilience, which will empower one to make wise choices and overcome obstacles in all aspects of life.
The W.I.L.D. program also offers an academic class where camping, survival, and leadership skills are demonstrated and taught in a hands-on way both in the classroom and on our facilities around campus including a climbing wall, low ropes, and high ropes course, as well as 150 acres at our disposal. The students enrolled in the WILD class are program ambassadors; helping to promote and prepare trips including checking out gear to other students and teachers.
Available to students starting their sophomore year, the class is graded on a standard level (not pass/fail) and factors into their GPA. As part of their grade, students are required to meet a trip quota each semester (the equivalent of 4 days in the outdoors, one of which must be an overnight). There are two different semesters of material, but students may continue in the program for up to 3 years. The expectations and requirements evolve as their time in the program increases.
Trips are usually announced in Chapel and unless otherwise specified, open to the whole study body. Most activities are geared toward high school age kids, both in level of difficulty and physical demand. Many trips are available to Middle Schoolers but are on a case by case, trip by trip basis. Signups are first come, first served and must be done by the participant with Mr. Griggs face-to-face; no emails or third-party representatives.
WILD Spring 2023
01/14/2023 Caving Day-Trip Indian Grave Point Cave
01/21/2023 Rock Climbing Daytrip - Chattanooga
02/08/2023 Winter Break 4-Day Backpacking Cumberland Island
02/18/2023 Caving Day-Trip Indian Grave Point Cave
02/24/2023 Environmental AP Class Trip 3-day
03/04/2023 Duck River Trash Clean-Up Community Service
03/10/2023 Forestry Cabin Overnight – Sewanee
03/15/2023 Alumni 3-Day Backpacking – Savage Gulf
03/24/2023 Spring Break 5-Day Canoe – Fontana Lake
04/06/2023 Easter Break 3-Day Adventure
04/21/2023 Backpacking Overnight – Walls of Jericho
05/06/2023 Canoe/Kayak Daytrip Duck River
05/13/2023 Whitewater Rafting - Ocoee
05/20/2023 Senior Survival
02/05/2022 Caving Day-Trip Indian Grave Point Cave
02/09/2022 Winter Break 4-Day Canoe Florida
02/18/2022 Forestry Cabin Overnight
03/12/2022 Rock Climbing Daytrip
03/18/2022 Backpacking Overnight – Walls of Jericho
03/25/2022 Spring Break 4-Day Backpacking AT-Max Patch
04/14/2022 Easter Break 3-Day Adventure
04/23/2022 Rock Climbing Daytrip
04/28/2022 Sophomore Class Trip – Canoe 3-Day Buffalo River
05/07/2022 Whitewater Kayaking Daytrip
05/15/2022 Canoe/Kayak Daytrip Duck River
05/21/2022 Senior Survival (7-Days)
