Truitt, in fact, doesn't describe himself as a teacher, but rather as a "facilitator."

A Hazy Relationship

While the program keeps Outward Bound's name, it has become mainly a GSE program during its nine-year tenure at Harvard.

Funding comes from the national Outward Bound headquarters and gets routed through Harvard. Thus while the costs of employees and expenses are on Harvard's books, the money has actually come from Outward Bound.

The GSE additionally works with the program through the courses--all of which are offered for credit like any GSE course--and through an advisory board.

"It's an Ed School project that is supported by Outward Bound, but it's a very collegial enterprise," says John W. Collins, chair of the advisory board for the Outward Bound program and GSE librarian.

"[Truitt and Stemmermann] teach courses, they advise students, they engage in staff development programs here at the Ed School," he says. "It's very much and Ed School program."

Yet the GSE's Outward Bound program does work closely with its namesake during GSE orientation.

Here, all students at the school get a chance to experience more typical Outward Bound programs.

Master's candidates do a giant lap sit in Cambridge Common, and doctoral candidates travel to Thompson Island, an Outward Bound post, to do ropes courses and trust falls.

"It's meant, number one, to provide [the new students] with friends right off the bat, and second to create what's called a learning community," Truitt says.

And apparently, it works.

"I loved [orientation]. I loved all of the techniques that were used and the activities we did to inspire creativity and appreciation for diversity," Corsi says.

From orientation on, students say the unique program has much influence in the school.

"It's what brought me here. If there wasn't some form of expeditionary education explicitly involved in [GSE], I wouldn't be here," Platt says.

"The program has an impact on the School of Education in that it's going to be bringing in some new types of ideas," he says.

"There's a growing realization that there's a groundswell of interest in this kind of teaching and learning," Truitt says.

"My hope is that [the program] will be a reason for people to come here," he says