This major is designed for students who are interested in the outdoors and the environment and want to become leaders in community-based organizations related to these fields, promoting the service, care, and education of children, adolescents, and life-long learners.

Career Opportunities

Students in Outdoor Education have the option to become Program Directors of Outdoor Environmental Centers or Outdoor Program and Camp Coordinators (e.g., Schrader Environmental Center).

Other Career Opportunities Include (but are not limited to)

• Academic Programming Naturalist
• Adventure Trip Leader and/or Specialist
• Afterschool Coordinator
• Associate Outdoor Education Leader
• (Assistant) Camp Director
• Camping Director
• Field Mentor
• Gardening and Farming Instructor
• (Outdoor) Activity Specialist
• (Outdoor) Adventure Specialist
• (Outdoor Adventure Trip Leader
• (Outdoor) Camp Counselor
• (Outdoor) Camp Educator
• (Outdoor) Camp Instructor
• Outdoor Education Instructor
• Outdoor Education Programming Director
• Outdoor & Environmental Educator (Naturalist)
• Outdoor Facilitator
• Outdoor Field Instructor
• Outdoor Instructor
• Outdoor Outreach Coordinator and/or Facilitator
• Outdoor Play Instructor
• Teen Adventure Program Leader
• Wilderness Trip Leader and/or Specialist

Certifications for the Students in the Outdoor Education Program Include (but are not limited to)

• Camp Director Certification
• Certification for Archery
• Certification in First Aid & CPR

Courses

The Bachelor of Arts in Community Education degree program with Outdoor Education major at West Liberty University requires minimum total 120 credit hours course of study.

The coursework includes:

• General Studies: 51 – 53 credit hours
• Common Core: 43 credit hours
• Major: 28 credit hours

Common Core Courses (43 Credit Hours)

• CEP 411 Formal & Non-Formal Education Models (3 hrs)
• CEP 421  Promoting Creativity & the Arts (3 hrs)
• CEP 422  Outdoor Learning Spaces (3 hrs)
• CEP 433  Program Design & Implementation (3 hrs)
• CEP 442  Community Empowerment & Engagement (3 hrs)
• CEP 443  Fundraising & Grant Writing (3 hrs)
• CEP 452  Reggio Emilia & Other Approaches (3 hrs)
• CEP 463  Leadership in Community Education (3 hrs)
• CEP 473 Community & School-Based Programming (3 hrs)
• CEP 493  Internship/International Community Experience* (4 hrs)
• EDUC 201 Human Development (3hrs)
• EDUC 205 Integrated Arts for Elementary Teachers (3 hrs)
• ENT 350 Entrepreneurship Law and Ethics (3 hrs)
• SPED 241 Exceptionalities and Diversities (3 hrs)

*Out of the 120 credit hour program, students need to take 40 hours of upper-level (300-level and up) courses

Major Courses (28 Credit Hours)

• BIO 224 Field Natural History (3 hrs – every other spring [not fall])
• SDE 232 First Aid & Emergency Services (3 hrs – Certification in First Aid & CPR)
• BIO 235 Introduction to Environmental Policies and Issues (3 hrs – every spring)
• PE 317 Net, Wall Games (3 hrs – Certification for Archery)
• PE 322 Organization and Administration of PE, Athletics, and Recreation
• BIO 340 General Biology for Elementary Teachers (4 hrs)
• CEP 482 Practicum II (3 hrs – off-campus)
• CEP 492 Practicum I (3 hrs – on-campus)

Select 1 of the Following from List Below

• GEO 307 Environmental Issues in Appalachia (3 hrs)
• GEO 312 Geographies of World Tourism (3 hrs)
• GEO 317 Geographies of Disasters (3 hrs)
• GEO 360 Land-use & Community Planning (3 hrs)
• GEO 400 Cultural Geography (3 hrs)
• GEO 405 Environmental Geography (3 hrs)
• GEO 444 Weather and Climate (3 hrs)
• GEO 481 Seminar in Urban and Rural Geography (3 hrs)

Click to view and download the complete Planning Check Sheet.

West Liberty University’s Bachelor of Arts in Community Education Program follows the 120 credit hour model for a bachelor’s degree and is designed for completion in three academic years. Despite the intention of this program to be an accelerated three-year program, students who wish to expand their studies to four years have the option to do so, by not taking summer classes but adding a fourth year of Fall IV and/or Spring IV classes.

Community Education’s Outdoor Education Partnership 

• 4-H Wheeling, West Virginia University Extension Service Ohio County, Wheeling, WV
• Oglebay Institute-Schrader Environmental Center, Wheeling, WV
• Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens, Pittsburgh, PA
• The Linsly Outdoor Center, Raccoon Creek State Park, Hookstown, PA
• The Meadowcroft Rockshelter Historic Village, Avella, PA
• The Wilds, Cumberland, Ohio

Questions

For more information, please contact:

Director of Community Education
Dr. Miriam Roth Douglas
West Liberty University
308 Main Hall
208 University Drive
Campus Union Box 162
West Liberty, WV 26074
Office: 304-336-8561
Fax: 304-336-8627
[email protected]