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You Make Growth Possible

When you support Outward Bound USA, you make more than a donation—you ignite transformation. Every gift helps young people find their courage, confidence, and sense of purpose through challenge and adventure in the outdoors. Because of you, students are becoming bold, compassionate leaders who shape their communities and our world for the better.

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From A Moment to a Movement

When you give to Outward Bound USA, you’re investing in more than a single experience. You’re funding the whole ecosystem that makes transformation possible—and ensures it lasts.

Ways To Give

Opening Doors for Students Who Need It Most

Your gift funds scholarships and removes barriers—covering tuition, gear, travel, and support so students from under-resourced communities can access life-changing outdoor education. You’re making sure financial obstacles don’t stand in the way of potential.

The Summit Fund

Expert Instructors Who Create the Magic

Our instructors don’t just lead trips—they create conditions for growth. Your support funds their training, safety systems, and the facilitation expertise that turns challenge into confidence for 30,000+ students every year.

Programs Built to Last Beyond the Trail

You’re supporting research-backed curriculum, safety protocols, community partnerships, and evaluation systems that ensure every course delivers real, measurable impact. Students leave with skills they’ll use for life.

A National Network of Possibility

Your gift strengthens all 9 regional Outward Bound Schools, amplifying our reach and impact. Together, we’re building a movement—empowering youth to rise with courage and lead with compassion, from coast to coast.

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Stories of Impact

Hear it in their own words—how students describe their experience, ones that you make possible.

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Less than 10% of teens can afford programs like Outward Bound. Your gift ensures no student misses their opportunity to thrive.

Donate Today
The image shows a wooden signpost in a wooded area. The top sign reads "Appalachian Trail" in white letters on a dark background. Below it, another sign says "Foot Traffic Only" in a similar style. The signs are weathered, and the surrounding foliage is lush and green. A trail is visible in the background, suggesting the start or continuation of the Appalachian Trail.
The image shows a group of people on a rocky, wooded trail. In the foreground, three young men are posing for the camera. One is wearing a hat and sunglasses, while the other two are wearing caps and t-shirts. In the background, other people are visible further up the trail, surrounded by trees and rocks.
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Social Return on Investment

Your Dollar Goes Further Than You Think

Independent research by Accenture shows that every dollar invested in Outward Bound yields a social return of $9. That’s a ninefold return, rooted in long-term benefits like increased academic engagement and graduation rates, improved mental health and emotional wellbeing, stronger workforce readiness and life skills, and reduced disengagement and risky behaviors. Your support creates measurable social value that extends well beyond the trail—strengthening students, families, communities, and our country.

The Summit Fund

Help a Young Person Rise

The Summit Fund is our flexible scholarship initiative that bridges the gap between what programs cost and what students can afford. Your contribution supports our ability to deliver the full experience—tuition, gear, travel, instructor expertise, and ongoing evaluation. Every gift removes a barrier and opens a door. And because Summit Fund contributions are mission-restricted, your donation is used wherever it’s needed most to get students on course.

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Join The Movement

Make Your Impact
A person with a large backpack sits on a rock outcropping, gazing out at a scenic view of rolling, forested mountains under a cloudy sky. The individual is positioned at the edge of a small clearing surrounded by lush greenery. The backpack is red and green, and the person appears to be taking a break to enjoy the landscape. The overall scene conveys a sense of peacefulness and solitude in nature. sparking lifelong growth through challenge—outside.
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Connect with Julia

Julia Farmer
Chief Development Officer

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