About
San Mateo Outdoor Education includes activities such as making their beds, caring for their clothes, keeping themselves clean, setting up meals, cleaning the dining hall, and creating their cabin skit performance. Students explore the forest and beach ecosystems, take part in environmental education classes, and join evening activities that include campfires, night hikes, and dancing.
• Ages: 10–12 years old
• Schedule: Students attend for a week at Outdoor Education
• Price: It costs more than $500 to provide food, lodging, instructors, equipment, and supplies for a student to attend a week of Outdoor Education.
The program is conducted in cooperation with local schools and the San Francisco YMCA Camp at Jones Gulch, with YMCA staff providing food service and facility maintenance, and district teachers taking an active part in the experience. Students are supervised at all times by their cabin leader, naturalist, or teacher, and a naturalist visits the child’s school beforehand to give a presentation to help prepare students. Each year, about 5,500 students and hundreds of teachers and cabin leaders spend a week at Outdoor Education, and more than 225,000 children have attended since its inception in 1968. The program dates back to the summer of 1965, with a district-wide program for San Bruno Park Schools starting in 1966 and a pilot program beginning in 1968 with 650 pupils, and high school students have served as volunteer counselors, now called cabin leaders.
The program states that its staff continues to awaken in students an appreciation of the environment and the interdependence of all living and non-living things. It is described as an award-winning Outdoor Education program, and both the academic program and the camp are certified Resident Outdoor Science Schools (ROSS) by California Outdoor School Administrators (COSA), with the camp also maintaining American Camping Association (ACA) accreditation. Each year, 11 naturalist interns are hired for a 33-week internship that runs from late August to late May, including a two-week training period and four days of winter staff enrichment. The site is a closed campus where parent visits during a student’s attendance are not allowed except for pre-arranged tours under specific conditions, and registration is done online through a link provided by the child’s teacher.
Families are asked to follow a clothing checklist, send older but serviceable clothing suited to the season, and limit luggage to one duffle bag or suitcase plus a sleeping bag, and they are urged not to buy new clothing or equipment. Special diets for medical reasons should be noted on the registration form and discussed with the Site Director, and mail is distributed to students during teacher time from Tuesday through Thursday. Jonathan Harris is listed as the contact for arranging tours, and Allison Collins is listed as the contact for further information about donations. For information about other Outdoor Education programs, families are referred to the California Outdoor Schools Association website.
Last updated April 2, 2026.
• Ages: 10–12 years old
• Schedule: Students attend for a week at Outdoor Education
• Price: It costs more than $500 to provide food, lodging, instructors, equipment, and supplies for a student to attend a week of Outdoor Education.
The program is conducted in cooperation with local schools and the San Francisco YMCA Camp at Jones Gulch, with YMCA staff providing food service and facility maintenance, and district teachers taking an active part in the experience. Students are supervised at all times by their cabin leader, naturalist, or teacher, and a naturalist visits the child’s school beforehand to give a presentation to help prepare students. Each year, about 5,500 students and hundreds of teachers and cabin leaders spend a week at Outdoor Education, and more than 225,000 children have attended since its inception in 1968. The program dates back to the summer of 1965, with a district-wide program for San Bruno Park Schools starting in 1966 and a pilot program beginning in 1968 with 650 pupils, and high school students have served as volunteer counselors, now called cabin leaders.
The program states that its staff continues to awaken in students an appreciation of the environment and the interdependence of all living and non-living things. It is described as an award-winning Outdoor Education program, and both the academic program and the camp are certified Resident Outdoor Science Schools (ROSS) by California Outdoor School Administrators (COSA), with the camp also maintaining American Camping Association (ACA) accreditation. Each year, 11 naturalist interns are hired for a 33-week internship that runs from late August to late May, including a two-week training period and four days of winter staff enrichment. The site is a closed campus where parent visits during a student’s attendance are not allowed except for pre-arranged tours under specific conditions, and registration is done online through a link provided by the child’s teacher.
Families are asked to follow a clothing checklist, send older but serviceable clothing suited to the season, and limit luggage to one duffle bag or suitcase plus a sleeping bag, and they are urged not to buy new clothing or equipment. Special diets for medical reasons should be noted on the registration form and discussed with the Site Director, and mail is distributed to students during teacher time from Tuesday through Thursday. Jonathan Harris is listed as the contact for arranging tours, and Allison Collins is listed as the contact for further information about donations. For information about other Outdoor Education programs, families are referred to the California Outdoor Schools Association website.
Last updated April 2, 2026.
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