The Brown Environmental Leadership Lab (BELL) combines concepts in environmental studies, ecology and leadership, with a mission of developing socially responsible leaders. At BELL, you’ll embark on a journey of learning and reflection while building community with the fellow student environmentalists in your program.
Experience the Land of the Midnight Sun for two spectacular weeks, where you’ll explore Alaska Native history and cultural preservation as well as arctic, marine and terrestrial ecosystems. You’ll investigate climate change’s impact on culture, economics and the environment while learning about socially responsible leadership.
Your Alaskan adventure begins in Anchorage, where you’ll have the unique opportunity to learn Alaskan history from an Alaska Native perspective. You’ll then travel down the Kenai Peninsula and take a boat across Kachemak Bay to spend three nights at the Center for Alaskan Coastal Studies’ Peterson Bay Field Station. This remote science center, nestled in coastal woodlands—truly breathtaking and accessible only by boat—is where you’ll interact with species from bald eagles to sea otters to starfish, to name a few.
You will spend time learning about Alaska’s important cultural and ecological history at site visits to the Anchorage Museum, Alaska Native Heritage Center, Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center, Cook Inlet Tribal Center and Matanuska Glacier.
Over the course of your BELL experience, you’ll also identify a pressing issue that you’re passionate about. With support from instructors and peers, you’ll develop an Action Plan to apply your new leadership knowledge to this issue when you return home.
Location(s)
- Anchorage, Alaska
Schedule
- Two weeks from mid July to early August
Cost/Compensation
- $6,628 tuition plus travel costs
Eligibility Requirements
- Students must be in grades 10, 11, or 12 and ages 16-18.
Deadline
- Mid May
Application or Entry Requirements
- A completed online application
- A 250–500 word essay responding to one of the following prompts:
- Describe an experience, accomplishment or challenge that made you grow as a student. In what ways do you hope to continue your educational and personal growth at Brown Pre-College?
- Our students come from a number of unique backgrounds and communities. Tell us something about your identity or background that has motivated or shaped your educational journey. In what ways do you hope to continue that journey at Brown Pre-College?
- An optional supplemental essay to convey anything not covered in the application that you wish to express
- A transcript and most recent grade report
- One letter of recommendation
Notifications of Decisions
- Rolling
Financial Aid Details
- Students can apply for an application fee waiver and various need-based scholarships.
Other Dates to Keep in Mind
- Application opens in mid January
Have other questions?
Brown is a nonprofit Ivy League research university in Providence, Rhode Island and the seventh oldest higher education institution in the United States (1764). It is comprised of the College, the Graduate School, Alpert Medical School, the School of Engineering, the School of Public Health and the School of Professional Studies. The university is also affiliated with the Marine Biological Laboratory and the Rhode Island School of Design. The undergraduate school, among the most selective in the country, is known for its Open Curriculum which eliminated distribution requirements allowing students to create their own syllabus and take any course pass/fail.
