Founded in 2011, the Tatoosh School is a nonprofit, university-level field school with classrooms in the towns, oceans, and forests of Alaska’s Inside Passage, a 1-acre beachfront base camp on Prince of Wales Island and seasonal offices in Wrangell. It is the school’s mission to foster first-hand learning about the ecology and environmental policy of southern Southeast Alaska.
With Tatoosh, you will achieve a hands-on understanding of ecology, natural history, geography, policy, and community through extended sea kayak expeditions and land-based explorations. Rigorous academics focus on the development of a sense of place and passion for civic engagement and a sound knowledge of the Pacific Coastal Ecoregion. You will be empowered to explore your surroundings with curiosity and compassion and to reach out as an active and informed citizen.
Listen to one course tell their story on Alaska News Nightly.
Traveling by kayak through the Alexander Archipelago will give you the opportunity to build outdoor leadership and technical skills. Challenging lectures and assignments will delve into topics ranging from island biogeography to contemporary forest management. Innovative curricula will teach scientific curiosity and civic engagement in ways that you can take home and practice, building a field studies experience into a lifelong passion for wild learning.
Meet our Staff and Board.
The Tatoosh School does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, creed, sexual orientation, national origin, age or disability in the administration of its admission or employment policies. The School operates under a special use permit with the USDA Forest Service, Tongass National Forest.