Congratulations to our graduating class of 2017, soon to be the class of 2021! We are always impressed—but never surprised—at the remarkable colleges Adventure Treks students will soon be attending. Below is the list of the colleges that you, our students, have chosen.
We feel privileged and grateful to have been a topic of many of our students’ college essays. We know that navigating through the college “sorting hat” has been difficult, and we want to applaud every one of you for all the hard work you have put into your successful high school careers.
We thought we would share an excerpt from former student Eli Burk’s acceptance letter from the University of Rochester: “For a major research university to thrive with just 5,300 undergraduates, each student has to make a personal and immediate contribution to campus life. The counselors recommended you for admission because of the lessons you learned from your experience climbing Alaska’s Matanuska Glacier. The committee and I are confident you will both stand out and grow stronger as part of the Rochester family.”
We’re so happy that you all have chosen schools that are a good fit for your personalities, abilities, and interests. We’d like to emphasize that what you will take away from your college experience has little to do with the prestige or rank of a given college, and everything to do with the mindset and attitude with which you approach your collegiate career. Success in college is about the effort poured into the experience, your desire to fuel your passions, the relationships formed with new friends and faculty, and your ability to thrive in new and sometimes ambiguous situations. We urge you to form relationships with faculty, while it can be more difficult than getting to know your AT instructors, these relationships are a key indicator of what makes a successful college career!
At a time when only 58 percent of students at four-year colleges graduate within six years, and many needing some kind of psychological counseling during their first year at school, we’re proud that the graduation rate of Adventure Treks students remains consistent at 98 percent! We believe the resilience, social confidence, collaboration, and community mindset skills you’ve strengthened through your Adventure Treks experiences will help you thrive in college (and the world beyond).
Having talked to dozens of our graduates currently in college, here are some examples of how the Adventure Treks experience helped them prepare for college life:
“AT did a phenomenal job preparing me for the transition to college. I had the ability to adapt to new and changing situations. I knew how to meet friends and how to work with different kinds of people. I have seen many of my friends struggle with the transition, but it’s been easy for me.” – Christopher, University of Richmond
“AT made me more comfortable in my skin; when I got to college, I didn’t have to try to be anybody but myself. It was refreshing and empowering.” – Max, Stanford University
“At AT, you learn how to help out and look out for others, how to thrive when things aren’t easy, and how to see a bigger picture beyond yourself. AT gave me the confidence to lead a school organization my freshman year, and it means I am always the one doing more than my share in project groups.” – Jake, University of Nevada, Reno
2017 Adventure Treks Freshmen
- Stephen Yan, Princeton University
- Jack Kanzler, Tulane University
- Ethan Kugler, University of Florida
- Logan Branagh, University of Sydney, Australia
- Hannah Petersen, Georgia Institute of Technology
- Harper Swing, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
- Jennifer Jacober, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
- Laura Glanz, Washington University in St Louis
- Alana Bojar, Washington University in St Louis
- Rudy Sutton, Union College
- Rebecca Carroll, US Navy
- Eli Hess, University of South Carolina
- Suzy Weiner, University of Montana
- Maria Rodriguez, Davidson College
- Rafi Derringer, University of Southern California
- Harrison Tankersley, University of Colorado, Boulder
- JD LeRoy, University of Southern California
- Sam Miller, University of Colorado, Boulder
- Eli Burk, University of Rochester
- Noah Ayers, Southern Methodist University
- Brian Kreidberg, Hofstra University
- Olive Welsh, Colorado College
- Lauren Brodsky, University of Pennsylvania
- Aaron Segal, Ithaca College
- Holden Bradley, University of Colorado, Boulder
- Ben Garelick, University of Virginia or Emory
- Henri Emmett, Bates College
- Krystin Langer, University of Iowa, School of Journalism
- Eli Hess, University of South Carolina
- Sam Pollack, Wesleyan University
- Jayson Butts, Wheaton College
- Spencer Butts, Hobart and William Smith Colleges
- Lydia Welp, Quest University, BC Canada
- Julia Woodson, University of Michigan
- Madison Coleman, Auburn University
- Matt Zenko, Ohio State University
- Sam Lewis, Colorado School of Mines
- Amara Cohen, University of Chicago
- Oliver Holden-Moses, Northwestern University
- Isabel Coletti, University of North Carolina, Asheville
- Evan Nagareda, Northwestern University
- Stephen Yan, Princeton or University of Chicago
- Josh Martelon, University of Colorado, Boulder
- Davis Wain, Gerogia Technical College
- Sydney Kay, Ithaca College
- Zach Zionts, Hobart and William Smith Colleges
- Joey Michael, University of Colorado, Boulder
- Sammie Hasen, University of Colorado, Boulder
- Jamie Leonard, Fort Lewis College
- Anna Gottesman, University of Michigan
- Martin Capriles, Boston University
- Kyra Wilkowski, University of Rhode Island
- Ryan Grinnell, University of California, Berkeley
- Ben Fertik, Purdue University
- Nicholas Hopkin, University of Michigan
If we missed you, please tell us where you are heading so we can add you to this list and put you in touch with Adventure Treks students already at your new school!