No. Our position on college credit for pre-college enrichment programs is that, in most cases, it drives up the cost of participation without adding much value to the experience. It’s unlikely that admissions officers will weight the fact that a course was taken “for credit” any greater than one that is not in admissions decisions. Furthermore, competitive universities do not typically allow pre-college credits to transfer. Typically to be eligible for credit transfer, a course must be offered by accredited four year degree granting institutions as part of an undergraduate degree program, be at least three weeks long and meet for a minimum of 30 contact hours, and/or course enrollment must be by a majority of current college students. The vast majority of pre-college courses, even those offered by colleges themselves, don’t meet these requirements. This is probably why large pre-college programs run by universities like Columbia don’t confer credit. They know it’s not going to transfer.

That isn’t a possibility through our program, but, even if you’re not already familiar with the concept of sustainability, we encourage you take a few minutes to look through the information here and contact us with any questions. The program is geared towards students with an interest in environmental studies, but this is a broad field that overlaps with a number of other disciplines, such as business, public policy, economics, and the sciences. We are also more focused on developing transferable skills (eg; critical thinking and problem solving), than developing deep content knowledge. Students will certainly acquire lots of newfound information about sustainability, but learning is circular and we are primarily focused on building skill-sets that will help students be successful in a variety of academic disciplines when they matriculate to college.

We typically operate with a program team of five or six for our campus-based Leadership Academies. The staff lives in the residence hall and is closely involved with all aspects of program administration. You can learn more about the specific staff for a program on our website. The student:staff ratio will never exceed 10:1 and is typically 8:1 or so.

Students will live in either single, double, or triple rooms in a Pratt Institute residence hall in Clinton Hill, Brooklyn. This is a beautiful “brownstone” neighborhood. Most New Yorkers consider Clinton Hill to be “post-gentrification” and “affluent” and “safe.” These are obviously subjective terms, but we want to provide some helpful information to prospective parents and students that may not be familiar with Brooklyn. Call us with any questions or concerns.

Students will be provided with a full meal plan. Breakfast and lunch are a la carte off a declining balance program. Dinner is typically family-style. Weekends feature brunch and dinner only. Dietary preferences or restrictions are no problem.

We believe that there is significant value in disconnecting and not letting technology interfere with the immersion experience. Students are permitted to bring cell phones to the program, although note that we strive to create a “phone free” environment except during designated times when phones can/should be used. This is to ensure student engagement in the program. In general, we ask that students keep cell phones off whenever we’re together as a group and/or participating in any structured activity, workshop, session, etc.

Our staff can treat basic medical situations on-site within the limits of their certifications and training. Participants with more serious needs will be transported to an emergency medical facility or urgent care.

All of our programs have a detailed risk assessment and emergency protocols that we develop with our local partners and which are updated annually. Some risks and protocols are specific to certain geographies and not applicable to all programs (urban environments, wilderness environments, etc). Broadly speaking, here are some of the measures we take as an organization to manage risk and prepare for the unexpected:

• During enrollment in the program, we ask parents to provide a medical history for each participant. Since several months typically pass between enrollment and participation, we ask parents to login to their MySummer account and update this information as we get closer to the summer. We require information on each participant’s immunizations, prescription and non-prescription medications, current health needs and medical insurance.
• We conduct a pre-summer annual training with all facilitators and establish clear protocols to mitigate risk and effectively mobilize resources in the event of an emergency.

Essential Eligibility Criteria

The mission of Sustainable Summer is to cultivate the next generation of environmental leaders. Each student must be fully committed to and capable of working hard, taking responsibility for him or her self, and working effectively in the group to achieve the goals of the program. The following Essential Eligibility Criteria state expectations of each participant.

Each participant must…

• Act reliably around hazards to minimize risk even when not directly supervised.
• Independently perceive, understand, and follow directions and instructions given by others to be able to successfully execute appropriate and perhaps unfamiliar, techniques to avoid hazards and/or manage risks. These directions may be given before the hazard or risk is encountered or may need to be given during exposure to the hazard/risk and out of necessity and practicality are often given orally.
• Be able to stay alert and to focus attention for up to several hours at a time while traveling in wilderness terrain, attending classes, or receiving instructions.
• If taking prescription medications, be able to maintain proper dosage by self-medicating without assistance from instructors or others (except possibly in emergency situations).
• Work effectively as a member of a team. This may require problem solving on an interpersonal or group level as well as a willingness to accept differences.
• Contribute to a safe learning environment—no verbal or physical inappropriate behavior of others is tolerated for any reason.

Sustainable Summer Red Rules

Violation of the following “red rules” will result in immediate dismissal from a program:

• NO engaging in activities that break US or local laws
• NO sexual contact or exclusive relationships
• NO sleeping in a room other than the one to which you have been assigned
• NO body alteration, including piercing and tattoos
• NO riding in motorized vehicles, unless authorized to do so by program staff
• NO behavior that physically or emotionally endangers yourself or others, including 
specifically the use of recreational drugs or alcohol

Sustainable Summer Bullying and Inclusivity Statement

Sustainable Summer defines bullying as harassment, intimidation, or any act intended to exclude or harm another person physically or psychologically. We believe that any form, type, or level of bullying or discrimination is unacceptable and we have a zero tolerance policy on bullying and reserve the right to dismiss any student who bullies or discriminates against others.

Student health and well-being is unquestionably the number one priority for every organization working with teens, and we’re no different. However, let’s start with a basic statement about traveling abroad (or anywhere, for that matter): No one can guarantee total protection from injury, illness, or death. We can, though, consider our actions in the context of risk, which is the ‘effect of uncertainty on objectives.’ Sustainable Summer has invested in the quality of its risk management practices by participating in the Risk Management Training offered by the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS), an organization with over 40 years of experience managing risk in wilderness environments.

As a result of this training Sustainable Summer has developed a risk management strategy encompassing all levels of our organization. In order to mitigate the risk that is inherent in all international expeditions, we have invested time and resources in these practices because the health and well being of our participants is of the highest priority. All Sustainable Summer programs feature experienced staff using established risk management practices to guide every decision.

No. We partner with the Pratt Institute to provide housing and meals. We also work with members of the Pratt faculty on programming, but the program is run by Sustainable Summer, not by Pratt.

Yes!

We are a “challenge by choice” program. We hope students that are apprehensive about an activity will take on the challenge, but we will respect the decision of any student not to participate in an activity provided they are otherwise fully committed to and capable of working hard, taking responsibility for him or her self, and working effectively in the group to achieve the goals of the program. We do not provide “alternate” programming if a student decides to sit out an activity.

We provide very detailed information about arrival and departure in the “Travel” section of your MySummer account (which students and parents can access after enrollment). This is where you’ll share your travel plans with us so we know when to expect you. The specifics of how and when to arrive differ from program to program, but generally speaking:

Students arriving by car should do so in the afternoon on the first day of the program and depart in the morning on the final day of the program.

Students arriving by plane typically plan travel to one of the NYC airports. We suggest JFK because it is pretty simple to take the AirTrain to Jamaica Station and then the LIRR from there to Atlantic Terminal, which is a short distance from Pratt. We are happy to greet arriving students at Atlantic Terminal to assist with luggage for the proverbial “last mile” to campus.

There are plenty of other options for getting to campus. We provide all participants with a roster and flight manifest, so students can coordinate ground travel (share a car service from the airport, take the AirTrain together, etc)

We are looking for intellectually curious and academically motivated students. For the most part, we focus on “applications” of knowledge rather than academic learning. This means a lot more project-based and experiential learning and a lot less lecturing than some students may be used to. It also means very full days to allow for field and group work. We try to create appropriate time in the daily calendar for rest, relaxation, and fun. It is difficult to find the balance because students often have a different sense and expectation of how much unstructured time is desirable. In practice, about 80% of past participants say that they found the pace of the program and balance between structured and unstructured time to be optimal. Of the 20% who felt otherwise, some would have preferred more “free time” while others would have preferred less. The same ratio (80/20) felt the program was appropriately “academic” and “intellectually challenging” with the dissenting 20% in “disagreement” over whether or not they would have preferred a more or less “academic” program.

How much does the program cost?

We operate on a tiered tuition model, which makes our participation in our programs accessible to families from across the socioeconomic spectrum. Please see our tuition page for additional information.

How do I enroll at the “tuition assistance’ level?

Once admitted to a program, there is a two-step enrollment process. First, the student reviews and acknowledges our Essential Eligibility Criteria. An enrollment email will then be sent to the student’s parent. Parents select their tuition tier during this step in the enrollment process. Enrolling at the “tuition assistance” level (20% discount on tuition) requires no additional documentation or application. It is offered based on the honor system. Please read more about our tiered tuition model for guidelines on choosing a tier.

What’s included in the cost of tuition?

Tuition includes all accommodations, meals, activities, curriculum and instruction, local transportation (excluding airport transfers), pre-program materials and support, gratuities, and contributions to service projects. Scholarships and financial aid are available.

Yes. Students can apply to multiple sessions and, if accepted, participate in consecutive sessions, either concurrently or not.

You must be at least 15 years of age and no more than 18 years of age on the program start date to participate. We are able to accept students from any location worldwide, although if you are applying from outside the United States there may be special visa and insurance requirements as part of your participation.