Outdoor enthusiasts seeking high-quality academics in Mother Nature’s back yard will be pleased to learn that Brevard College was recently among 30 schools in the nation listed as a Great Small College for Nature Lovers by Great Value Colleges.
“It’s an honor to be recognized not only for the quality a liberal arts education offers, but how much that is enhanced by our location,” said Brevard College President David Joyce. “Having several national and state forests right next door allows us to truly provide our students with pragmatic and enjoyable learning experiences.”
The College enrolls over 700 students annually and offers a degree in Wilderness Leadership and Experiential Education. Students can also choose from a number of outdoor adventure and advocacy clubs, including an environmental club, a rock climbing club that competes nationally, paddling and outing clubs. Earlier this year, the College became the first academic institution in the southeast to commit to divesting its endowment from fossil fuels by 2018.
Great Value Colleges is a website that uses researched-based articles to help students get the best possible education for their money. To come up with the list of 30 Great Small Colleges for Nature Lovers, the site began with a list of colleges reporting student populations under 10,000. The site then used information from the National Center for Education Statistics’ College Navigator Database, as well as individual schools’ websites and articles about top schools and cities for nature lovers to narrow the list to 30.
Researchers used a point system and considered the number of outdoor-oriented sports, clubs and teams; the proximity to outdoor opportunities; the university’s green status; the campus and surrounding area; and the number of nature-focused courses/degree programs. Brevard College ranked 26.