Story and photos by Gabriel Sedighi ’26
Walking around the MICDS campus is normally a tranquil experience with liminal noise from students and the occasional toll of the Olson bell signaling the change in the hours, yet in the past week, something unusual has been happening. Several plumes of smoke have been rising from the MAC around noon, and the excited shouts of many people can be heard. To those who do not know, it may seem like an army of pyromaniacs has invaded the MICDS campus, ready to burn the school to the ground, but this is not the case. Instead, it is just the Winter Term Survival 101 class led by Brian Coco, Upper School Science Teacher, Chris Ludbrook, Upper School Math Teacher and Ninth Grade Dean, David Hotaling, Upper School Counselor, and Angelina Reiter.
At the beginning of every class, the students are taught a key skill necessary to survive in the wild and experiment around in the class trying to emulate that, whether it be how to create a shelter from just rope and a tarp to what to do in a medical emergency (hint: if you get stabbed by something, just keep it in). The students then take what they learn with them to the field, where they are split up into groups and sent off to complete a series of challenges, the first always being a quite literal trial by fire. “It’s a fun struggle to make the fire because sometimes it catches on easily and other times it’s difficult, and you have to try again multiple times until you finally get it,” expresses Samantha O’ Neil ’28. With this key skill down, the students were then able to focus on other aspects of survival like the electromagnetic science behind compasses that can be used for wayfinding or how to obtain, clean, bacteria free water through nature tricks and modern invention. All of this is under the watchful eyes of the teachers, ensuring a fun, explorative environment while also maintaining safety.
Not only that, but this class acts like a melting pot, teaming students from grades nine to eleven with people they never imagined working with as they develop the crucial skills needed to survive both in the wilderness and in modern society, like teamwork and communication. After all, you never know where life is going to take you. “If I am ever in that situation, I want to be prepared,” said Ford Werner ’28.
The best part of this course: there is no prior camping experience needed. Even students who have never picked up a stick in their lives are encouraged to sign up for this class. As Mr. Coco puts it, “I think great things happen outdoors. It’s just a way to get away from electronics and society and just to relax and enjoy nature. So hopefully it’ll inspire some of them to do that.” For those students who took Survival 101, they enjoyed embracing their inner Daniel Boone in one of the more wild winter term classes.
