Cornell Outdoor Education (COE) is one of the oldest university-based outdoor education programs in the United States. Beginning with pre-freshman wilderness orientation trips in 1972 and Physical Education credit classes in 1976, the program has grown substantially over the years to serve both the increasing interest in traditional outdoor pursuits as well as new and emerging areas of interest, such as experiential team training. (See A Method to the Madness for a more complete history of COE.)

In the late 1970's Cornell Outdoor Education collaborated with the Cayuga Nature Center to construct a low and high element challenge course facility. For almost twenty years, COE used that facility for a variety of course offerings, including Basic Mountaineering and Teambuilding.

In the late 1980's, just as corporate teambuilding programs were coming of age nationally, COE began receiving more and more requests to provide teamwork skills training for a variety of professional groups. Most notably, Cornell's Johnson Graduate School of Management contracted with COE to run a six-day Teamwork and Leadership Development class for 2nd-year MBA students—a course that since has run annually to rave reviews.

In response to this growing demand, COE staff developed teamwork and leadership oriented curricula that integrated experiential activities with various theoretical models, and also constructed a "portable ropes course" that could be set up at any location. With help from individuals like Martha Fischer, Karl Johnson, Darl Kolb, Dave Moriah, Clint Sidle, and Dan Tillemans, the program grew to a point where a more permanent facility was needed.

In 1994, a strategic plan that prioritized ambitious growth for experiential teamwork and leadership development programs was adopted. Cornell alumnus Karl Johnson '89 was hired to serve as the first full-time director of Teambuilding and Professional Development Programs, a position that COE advisory board members later endowed in honor of former COE Executive Director Dan Tillemans.

In 1997, six years after building the Lindseth Climbing Wall, COE constructed the largest university-based challenge course in the United States. The Hoffman Challenge Course, made possible by a gift from Cornell alumnus and COE advisory board member Robert C. Hoffman '58, has 50 elements, including 20 high elements, a 64-foot high replica of Cornell's McGraw clock tower complete with "tree-fort" platform, and a 400-foot long zipline.

COE now serves thousands of participants every year in a wide variety of experience-based teamwork and leadership development programs. These programs range from recreational high element play-days to intensive, one-week long leadership development programs. Our clientele ranges from local youth groups and Cornell students to Fortune 500 corporations and local and national government agencies.

In order to distinguish our services and to continue providing the best service possible to our clients, we now more fully integrate the experiential activities that are the core of our programs with various diagnostic and psychometric instruments. Our trainers are certified to administer a variety of such instruments, including Situational Leadership® II, Emotional Intelligence, and the highly respected Myers-Briggs Type Indicator® (MBTI).

Although our trainers have always been outfitted with duffel bags and able to provide portable programs at any suitable location, our latest initiative is partnering with a variety of conference centers in the northeast in order to make our services more convenient and accessible. Stay tuned for more information on partner facilities, and on additional future developments in the Cornell Team & Leadership Center program.