Risers

Higher Education Funding For Wilderness Therapy Students

“The continuum of care for participants in wilderness therapy programs has just become broader in both the continuum for graduates as well as the care that encircles and enriches their lives. It is this type of community movement that makes the world a better place.”

Michael Gass, PhD, LMFT, is a Professor and the Director of the Outdoor Behavioral Healthcare Research Center (obhcenter.org) at the University of New Hampshire.

A RISER is defined as any student who has completed a Wilderness therapy program. Wilderness therapy is understood as the prescriptive use of adventure experiences provided by mental health professionals that kinetically engage students on cognitive, affective, and behavioral levels.

RISERS is a Donor-Advised Fund account through Charles Schwab Charitable. This fund is designed to celebrate the tremendous accomplishment youth have made while on their expedition in the field, and pursue their higher education of interest.

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About Us

Supporting Graduates of Wilderness Therapy

Megan has had a lifelong passion for outdoors, education, athletics, and youth. RISERS was inspired and developed after her personal experience of having her child graduate from a Wilderness Therapy program and believes the student’s accomplishment should be widely recognized. Megan is a certified Parent Coach, and currently she is in completing her master’s in counseling and is in practical training to be a Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC), with an emphasis in Adventure Based Psychotherapy (ABP). Megan is an active contributor and Board Member of Sky’s the Limit Fund, which assists families in need of financial support who are seeking Wilderness Therapy for their child. She is a student member of Independent Education Consultants Association (IECA), Friend of Outdoor Behavior Health Council (OBH), National Association of Therapeutic Schools and Programs member (NATSAP), Association of Experiential Learning member (AEE), a Certified Wilderness First Responder (WFR), and Life member of the FBI Citizens Academy (FBICA).