Looking Forward in 2025
As we enter our third full year since reopening post-COVID, Shady Creek Outdoor School remains committed to delivering transformative outdoor education experiences. This year, we once again served over 5,000 elementary, middle, and high school students, providing them with immersive learning, deep connections to nature, and a sense of belonging that lasts long after they leave our campus.
At Shady Creek, we are not just running a program—we are changing lives. One of the most powerful reminders of this impact came from a student named Kookaburra, who wrote in a letter, “Hello, you changed my life… Being at Shady Creek made me feel, I don’t know, just magical.”
That feeling—something indescribable, yet deeply real—is what makes outdoor education so powerful. It’s not just about learning science in the forest or experiencing wildlife up close—it’s about students discovering confidence, wonder, and a sense of self they may never have found elsewhere. These are the moments that define our work and validate the investment Sutter County Superintendents make in this program.
In 2024, we deepened this impact through strategic partnerships. Our collaboration with NASA Globe elevated our curriculum, bringing real-world scientific exploration into our students’ hands. Through Sutter Health’s support of the FitQuest program, we provided essential wellness education while helping schools bridge financial barriers to outdoor learning. Our Families in the Forest event at Shady Creek and our Concert in the Park in Yuba City each brought over 200 participants together, strengthening community ties and reinforcing the importance of time spent outdoors.
Our commitment to accessibility continues through Conrad’s Closet, which ensures every student has the gear they need to fully participate in outdoor education. With support from Marysville Rotary, the McDonald’s Foundation, and many generous families, more students than ever arrived at Shady Creek equipped and ready to learn.
This year also marked the launch of our partnership with Friends of Shady Creek, a nonprofit dedicated to ensuring that financial limitations never prevent a child from attending camp. Their support is already making a difference in expanding opportunities for students across our region.
Beyond our local impact, 2024 also saw Shady Creek recognized on a global scale. We were honored to present at the International Outdoor Education Research Conference (IOERC) in Tokyo, Japan, an opportunity that showcased our program’s effectiveness and opened doors for future collaborations in outdoor education.
As we look toward 2025, we remain deeply grateful for the support of Sutter County Superintendents in this mission. Shady Creek isn’t just a place where students learn—it’s where they discover who they are, what they’re capable of, and how the world around them can inspire a lifetime of growth. The investment in this program is an investment in changing kids’ lives, and there is no greater return than that.
