Written by Instructor Carly Winner (Escrito en español más abajo) Cottonwood Institute is once again collaborating with Wildlands Restoration Volunteers (WRV), City of Lafayette Parks, Recreation, and Open Space, Thorne Nature Experience, and Nature Kids Lafayette on the Lafayette Youth Corps (LYC) program, which gives high schoolers an opportunity help to care for parks trails… Read more »
Denver artist Mike Wilson, who has painted magnificent watercolors of the highest peaks in Colorado, has joined forces with Cottonwood Institute, an award-winning 501(c)3 educational non-profit organization based in Denver, in an effort to break down barriers to get more underrepresented kids outdoors and inspire them to be leaders for the environment. Wilson’s and Cottonwood’s… Read more »
Written by CAP Instructor Carly Winner The first Cottonwood Institute overnight of the 2021-2022 school year was a success as students braved wintry conditions for a fun night. The AXL Academy CAP class met on Thursday morning to venture up to Cal-Wood Education Center. On the drive up, we couldn’t see much through the fog… Read more »
Written by CAP Instructor Erin Angel (Escrito en español más abajo) The Centaurus High School CAP class partnered with Lucky to Ride for our September Field Day. Feeling actually lucky to ride, 13 intrepid humans hailing from seven different countries came together for a joyful day of mountain biking and building community. We’ll leave it… Read more »
Written by Chelsea Tossing (Escrito en español más abajo) When we first began the Changemakers program in the summer of 2020, the world felt as if it had been turned upside down. Students had been out of school for months, and the lockdowns that extended into summer proved even more isolating. As we began thinking… Read more »
Written by CI CAP Instructor Erin Angel (Escrito en español más abajo) Once upon a hot September day, the students from Angevine Middle School CAP Outdoor Class insisted on taking a giant zucchini with them on their walking field trip. They named him Zucchi and they accidentally broke him in half during Ms. Angel’s safety… Read more »
Get to know CAP Instructor and Administrative Assistant Carly Winner! Carly teaches CAP Class, CAP Club, and other outdoor programs at CI. When she’s not in the (outdoor) classroom, Carly is most likely sharing CI’s success stories through social media or at our events. Read our other staff and board profiles here! Why is environmental… Read more »
Written by CI Cap Instructor Carly Winner My students from the Aurora Expeditionary Learning Academy (AXL) CAP Class ventured to Cherry Creek State Park on September 10th to brave the heat and enjoy the fresh air. Our first adventure of the school year focused on team building activities, exploring, and enjoying our time outdoors. In preparation for… Read more »
Meet Dru Falco, CI’s Logistics Coordinator! Dru is responsible for risk management and logistics behind our field programs, from choosing locations to cleaning gear to figuring out how to acquire fishing poles for a trip. If she’s not working on a spreadsheet, you can find her running in the mountains or trying to find the… Read more »
The CI Move-A-Thon was a magnificent celebration of movement and a ceremony to honor CI’s triumphant work. We are happy to report that we raised just over $44,000 to support our students and programs, which we couldn’t have achieved without the generous and amazing We Ride 4 community! To kick off the evening, Curriculum Manager,… Read more »
