About

My SIS-independent project for the fourth term of my senior year at Newton North High School is a guidebook/textbook on the curriculum of the Junior Maine Guide program. The JMG program is run by the State of Maine Inland Fisheries and Wildlife Department each year to evaluate approximately 60 candidates from camps in Maine, aged 14-17. The program tests candidates on their outdoor camping and wilderness skills. My guidebook will be designed to prepare campers at Birch Rock Camp in Waterford, Maine for the week-long testing camp held annually in late-July. I will be in contact with several of my co-counselors, and I will also refer to summaries of the tests that are already provided by the program in order to develop the most comprehensive guide possible for me to teach the program this summer and for others in summers to come.

I participated in the program in 2009 with a friend and we both passed in our first year, while most candidates take two or three years to complete. This past summer I worked with a 14-year-old camper to prepare for his test and brought him to testing camp in July. He did not pass on his first try, though he will be returning this summer hopefully to complete his certification.