The Alderleaf Wilderness Certification Program
"The ultimate wilderness skills training course." 
The Alderleaf Wilderness Certification Program is a comprehensive, year-long course on wilderness skills encompassing herbal medicine, survival, wildlife tracking, sustainable living, naturalist skills, and outdoor leadership. Led by expert faculty, the program prepares students to readily apply nature skills in environmental conservation, education, sustainable living, and beyond.
Core Studies at the Alderleaf Wilderness Certification Program: 
Wilderness Survival: Hunter-Gatherer Living SkillsLearn how to build natural shelters, purify water, create friction fire, find wild food, and master a variety of wilderness crafts. Wilderness skills help people survive in the outdoors and weather the aftermath of natural disasters. Wildlife Tracking: Interpreting Tracks and Signs 
Edible & Medicinal Plants: Nourishing Wild PlantsLearn how to properly identify, gather, and prepare wild plants for meals, medicines, and tools. Wild plants provide healthy and nourishing sustenance as well as materials for life. Naturalist Skills: Place-based Ecological Knowledge 
Permaculture: Sustainable Resource DevelopmentLearn about sustainable living practices such as permaculture, agroforestry, ecological restoration, and indigenous farming. Lessons from past cultures can help point the way towards a greener future. Nature-Based Teaching: Education and Culture 
Jason Knight, Core Faculty: Jason has developed and taught courses on Traditional Ecological Knowledge for over ten years at wilderness schools around the United States. Jason's expertise is in wildlife tracking and wilderness survival skills. He is certified as a Level III Track & Sign Interpreter through CyberTracker International and holds a Bachelor of Science in Wildlife Ecology and Environmental Education.
Guest Teachers: 
Chris Kenworthy, Adjunct Faculty: Chris has been teaching wilderness courses for over 15 years. At Alderleaf Chris shares her passion and knowledge of nature awareness and native scout skills. She is the director of The Coyote's Path Wilderness School which she founded in 1994. She now lives in the Northeastern Cascade Mountains on 160 acres in a remote cabin off the grid. Chris has been a registered nurse for 27 years working in ER & ICU and is well versed in both modern and herbal wilderness medicine.
Allan “Hawkeye” Sande, Adjunct Faculty: Allan has over fifteen years of experience teaching people about nature and Native American life. At Alderleaf Allan shares his expertise in education, mentoring, and program development. Allan is the director of Quiet Heart Wilderness School, which he founded in 1997 when he saw the need for children to have the opportunity to explore and understand the wilderness. His desire to bring young people back in touch with the Earth fuels his passion to teach.
Karen Sherwood, Adjunct Faculty: Karen has taught ethnobotany for over twenty-five years. Karen will be guest teaching at the Alderleaf Wilderness Certification Program , where she will share her strong understanding of traditional uses of wild plants, including their edible, medicinal, and utilitarian uses. Karen is a Northwest native who grew up studying the flora of the Pacific Northwest.
Frank Sherwood, Adjunct Faculty: Frank has been teaching wilderness skills for over twenty-five years. Frank will be guest teaching at the Alderleaf Wilderness Certification Program where he will offer his expertise in skills such as bow making, traditional tanning, primitive fishing, flintknappping, and other aspects of wilderness survival. Frank’s mastery of skills, and his ability to help others master skills of their own, makes him a unique and effective mentor.
For more information about the staff of the Wilderness Certification Program, visit the Alderleaf faculty page. The Alderleaf Wilderness Certification Program at a Glance: Location: Based out of our campus in Monroe, WA with field trips to additional locations in the Pacific Northwest. Duration: School-year schedule. Meets Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays, 9am - 3pm, with several extended trips during 28 weeks of classes between September and June. Enrollment: Class sizes range from 12 to 18 students. The application period for the 2008-2009 school year is open. Tuition: $8500. Tuition covers all instruction and field trips. Financial aid is available.
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