TRUE NORTH
navigating opportunities for teens
~ True North youth have earned over $2.75 million in college scholarships & financial aid since 2014 ~
10 students and 2 staff spent a week with Deer Hill Expeditions, including 5 days on the San Juan River.
13 students spent the day learning to paddle board at Miramonte in Norwood, CO.
Students supporting riders at the Norwood aid station
10 students and 2 staff spent a week with Deer Hill Expeditions, including 5 days on the San Juan River.
Since March of 2020, and weekly throughout the pandemic, True North teens from three school districts have participated with their peers in academic tutoring, outdoor activities, community service, cooking classes, and more. Loneliness and isolation have been identified by mental health experts as key risk-factors leading to depression, substance abuse and mental health disorders. A recent CTC (Communities that Care coalition) survey of Telluride youth found that 37% of youth felt hopeless at times. These issues have been especially compounded for teenagers by the pandemic and the transition to and from online learning, along with our rural location. True North’s programs have directly confronted these risk-factors by providing key protective factors every week throughout the pandemic: hundreds of hours of social activities, group programming, peer and adult mentorship and frequent communication. In the spring of 2020, True North’s board approved a protocol to allow for safe in-person programming. Through community service, outdoor excursions, workshops, art projects, and more, True North positively engaged 165 students from Telluride, Norwood, and Nucla high schools over the last year. True North also offered virtual and in-school programming throughout the year as well as matched students with private academic tutors. Our total combined student engagement hours since March of 2020 is over 3,300 hours.
Find Your True North
We start building student “resumes” that emphasize work history, community service, and academics when they are in the 8th grade, in order to set them up for success when it comes time to apply for college, trade school, or make a transition into the workforce.