Arete Program Takes our Students to New Heights

Areté is a Greek word meaning "excellence" or virtue," being the best one can be. The areté of something is the highest quality that can be reached. Ancient Greek philosophy stressed the development of areté in three aspects of one's life: Mind, Body, and Spirit. Similarly spelled to areté, an arete is defined as a sharp mountainous ridge.

This last weekend, we partnered up with Vertical Hold Rock Climbing Gym, for our first-ever Arete Program. For the first part of the program, we talked about what it means to be a good team, leader, and how to have fun while also being safe. We started off with a brainstorm on what makes a good team. Some students shouted out communication, and others mentioned trust. As they soon found out, these were both critical to climbing safely as a group.

We then had our safety briefing, and got climbing shortly after! After the program had ended, a student mentioned "I love that we can challenge ourselves. It was even better that we had to rely on each other for safety and fun. I have learned how to cooperate better with my teammate, and I appreciate that I had the opportunity to face my fear of heights."

Another student said, "I learned that communication plays a big part in life and that it can only benefit both sides. I also learned that I should take advantage of new opportunities because there is so much to learn from everything and everyone." All of our students had an amazing time, and we can't wait to continue this program in the future!