On Saturday, April 26, Kelly Elliott, assistant professor of physical education, wellness and sport, will lead her camping and outdoor recreation class on a rafting trip down the Ocoee River near Chattanooga, Tennessee.
Elliott has been teaching the class for the past three years and has incorporated the trip into the curriculum each year. This year the trip will consist of 14 students and chaperones total.
The class covers three major activities during the semester: white water rafting, camping and another outdoor recreation activity, each of which require some sort of trip or experience that the students participate in.
The trip consists of leaving early Saturday morning, driving to Chattanooga, rafting down the middle level of the river, grabbing lunch somewhere and then driving back to Jackson.
“I am looking forward to the trip as it is an opportunity for some people to conquer a fear,” Elliott said. “But it is also neat to see those who aren’t scared reaching out and learning to come together as a team.”
Andrew Key, an enrollment counselor for undergraduate admissions, is a chaperone who will be attending this weekend.
“The thing I am most looking forward to seeing is the facial expressions the students make when they fall out of the raft right before they hit the water,” Key said.
The month of April is not technically in rafting season, and the temperature of the water is expected to be extremely cold.
“I love being outdoors and so being able to get involved and hang out with students was a main reason I was interested in chaperoning,” Key said.
According to Elliott, witnessing an experience where people have to figure out how to work together, not just physically, is another thing she enjoys about this class and is attributed to her extensive background in athletics and coaching.
“This trip may be scary for some at first, but for those who have rafted before it is a good experience in order to challenge them,” Elliott said. “This class is filled with students who have all different majors and are involved in all sorts of different things on campus, and so it is really neat to watch them build relationships through this experience.”
Madison Anderson, junior social work major, is one of the students attending the trip. Anderson said she has really enjoyed taking this class this semester, and she is most excited about being able to hang out with classmates and also do something different.
“This class has really taught me an appreciation for the outdoors and so I think everybody should take this class,” Anderson said. “We also go zip lining and camping and so being a part of this class has really been cool as it has taught me to become more of a leader, and that wasn’t something I expected.”
