As an Outdoor Educator, Lucy Hayward ’21 Challenges and Inspires

For the nearly three years since she graduated with a bachelor’s degree in environmental science, Lucy Hayward ’21 has been working as an outdoor educator at the Hurricane Island Outward Bound School (HIOBS), a nonprofit organization based in Camden, Maine that specializes in “expeditionary learning,” an approach that educates students through real-world experiences outside the classroom.

At Colby-Sawyer, Lucy was involved outside the classroom as a member of the Outing Club and as a staff member at the Ray Indoor Climbing Wall in Mercer Hall. Now, as an outdoor educator, Lucy, who hails from Rockport, Maine, said she acts as both a captain and a field instructor. working primarily with sailing and backpacking expeditions that last from five to 30 days.

“I help facilitate students’ self-discovery through the educational approach of expeditionary learning,” Lucy said. “Over the course of the expedition, students will be empowered to take charge of their own learning while simultaneously working through various group dynamics. [They] practice many different leadership styles [and] provide feedback for their group members and self-reflect on their own performance.”

Lucy said that collaborating with her co-instructors as they empower students together is her favorite part of the job. As a result, she sees herself working at HIOBS well into the future.

“My coworkers are some of the most compassionate and ambitious people I have ever met,” Lucy said. “They have inspired me to take advantage of opportunities and to live my life to the fullest. I am looking forward to continuing to develop my career as a field instructor at the Hurricane Island Outward Bound School.”

The outcomes reports from the Harrington Center for Experiential Learning indicate that, like Lucy, 99% of the Class of 2021 and 100% of the Class of 2022 were employed or in graduate school within six months of graduation. Read more  about Colby-Sawyer graduate outcomes.