Our alumni are high potential youth, educators, corporate managers, college students, military veterans, struggling teens, and adults from all walks of life. They are better equipped to participate in their communities as responsible citizens – whether at home, at school, or in their neighborhoods – because of their NCOBS experience.

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"Adaptability," Mike Fischesser, Former NCOBS Program Director

We have adapted our programs countless times in the past 50 years to meet the needs of diverse populations. Through this journey of service, we confirm, with each program adaptation, the profound ability and universal relevance of the Outward Bound experience to foster the best of the human spirit. Now more than 160,000 alumni strong, we draw lessons from our diverse students and carry them forward in our continued outreach.

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"Outward Bound Veterans Program", Florida Atlantic University, 2016

Service is the bedrock upon which NCOBS was founded. It is an essential component of all of our courses. Through service, we build compassion and awaken a sense of community responsibility. Starting with our early courses in the late 1960s at Table Rock, when we established the Fire Crew to assist the US Forest Service, community service of all kinds has been central to the NCOBS experience. Through it, students learn how to engage responsibly in the work of communities. They learn that they are needed, and this discovery alone can contribute to a lifelong desire to serve.

At NCOBS, we believe Outward Bound is for everyone. Our goal is to make the experience accessible to as many motivated students as possible. Thanks to the generosity of our supporters, we provide scholarships for students from all walks of life so they may attend a course. Today, nearly 50 percent of our students receive financial support. As well, we work in Asheville, Atlanta, Charlotte, Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C. to improve schools and communities, and we provide tuition-free courses for military veterans.

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“Student Scholarship Video”, 2015

As stewards, we take responsibility. Whether in the office or in the field, we practice, and we foster stewardship as an essential quality of our citizenship. On course, students are not only moved by the beauty of the wilderness, or the richness of the urban environment, they learn to navigate it responsibly. No matter the course location, we cultivate an ethic of personal responsibility that has lasting, positive effect.

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"Finding Clarity," NCOBS's Veterans Program, 2016