"I'm so grateful to have found a school where my son can thrive. He loves learning, but the traditional high school program just did not work for him. His self-confidence has soared since he started at Nawa. He also was able to make up lost credits and will graduate with his friends."

"Robby has gained self-esteem by the guidance he has received and the acceptance. You have given him the self-assurance to be himself and care for others. He has a gentle, caring side that nurtures others. Thank you for fostering this caring attitude and allowing him to feel good about his good deeds."

"Please know that our family greatly appreciates all that Nawa has done for its' students. We believe that Nawa offers a very unique program, requiring a great deal of patience and support from faculty and staff. Personally, we have seen so much growth in our daughter Stephanie, who is in her first year at Nawa, attending the extraordinary International Program. Her self-esteem, independence, and confidence have flourished in such a short amount of time. We can't say enough about your wonderful staff. These kids are blessed to have had all that Nawa has given them. Many of these kids will look back upon their experiences at Nawa with extreme gratitude and a feeling of being rescued during the very difficult teen years. With this, many will give back to society in some way, and/or make us all very proud. Nawa is making a difference. Keep up the good work!"

"Our son Travis age 16, spent the summer of '02 going to summer school to pass algebra which he was failing now for the third time. He was to do summer school in '03 again, for the same class. Travis has some mild learning differences which I know didn't help. On top of this, he was not motivated to do much, his love and passion of backpacking, camping, fishing (which we all did as a family) seemed to lessen, he was hanging with a crowd of kids that had NO motivation at all, and were starting to make some bad decisions.

"So, my search for something for Travis to do in the summer of '03 began. When I found Nawa's summer programs (a place he could do the things he loved like rock climb, backpack, rafting, cave dwelling and it was a California accredited school and he could also take algebra) I was hoping we hit the jackpot. The only thing left was to tell him he was going. Travis is pretty adaptable so he agreed with some hesitance.

"After his summer experience, when we went to pick him up there was a sparkle in his eyes that we hadn't seen in a long while and he wanted to stay for the next session. He did, however, end up only going to one summer session.

"I knew something had changed when on our 4 1/2 hour drive home Travis did not stop talking about the most wonderful time he had, and the truly awesome staff at Nawa. Travis also passed algebra with an "A". Not only that, he got to study on a mountain top, one-on-one with his teacher. Travis wanted to go back and hopefully do both summer sessions the next year.

"Summer of '04 he went back to do both summer sessions with the Lassen Expedition and loved it. Then we got a wonderful opportunity to send Travis to Nawa's International Academy for his senior year 2004-2005. What a whirlwind, he was so excited.

"What an unbelievable learning experience... and that's an understatement.

"Travis's time with Nawa really taught him to become an independent person, to follow through with things, and to be accountable for his actions. He also wanted to continue on to College, which was not one of his goals before Nawa.

"After graduating from Nawa in June, Travis went to a NOLS WEMT (National Outdoor Leadership School, Wilderness Emergency Medical Technician) Course and now is an EMT. He is starting college classes at our local J.C. and applying to Humboldt State and Prescott Colleges. His attitude is so much better at home; he is respectful and helpful.
WOW WOW WOW thank you so much Nawa."

"Our son Edward attended Nawa for two and one half years. Prior to that, he had attended several private schools in northern Virginia. The schools in this area are, in general excellent. However, we had never found a good "match" for Edward. He was not doing well academically and starting to have social problems.

"We saw a very positive change in Edward during his time at Nawa. His academics improved and he seemed enthusiastic about learning for the first time. The teachers were creative and very conscientious in helping him. The very small class size and the emphasis on "learning by doing" made this a great 'fit' for Edward.

"His social skills improved in his relationships with others, as did his relationship with us when he came home. Prior to leaving for Nawa, Edward was often uncooperative, didn't listen, and rude to his parents and to teachers. He started Nawa in February of the 10th grade and then went through the summer program that year. When he came home at the end of the summer, friends commented on his changed outlook on life and his improved interactions with others.

"Edward graduated in June 2005. It was a bittersweet time for all of us. We were all sad to leave the wonderful environment that Nawa had provided for Edward. However, it gave him a great foundation and he is now enrolled in a college internship program in Illinois. We will be forever grateful to Nawa for what they did for our son."

"It's really quite simple. Nothing else was working. We tried different schools, tutors, consultants, therapists and the situation was getting worse and worse. We were desperate. Our son was failing everything, had no self-esteem, and was becoming depressed. We were frightened. We thought we had run out of alternatives. Yet we believed that somewhere inside that head of his, he was capable of learning and even enjoying it. We had noticed that when he did learn things he went about it differently. We weren't exactly sure what was going on. But we definitely knew what didn't work.

"All the schools he had been in used the same old standard way of teaching that hasn't changed much in a hundred years. The student sits still in a classroom for hours of lectures and note taking and produces hours of homework. How laughable as we look back.

"We couldn't threaten him anymore to produce. There was nothing left to take away from him. No punishments worked. He stopped caring. We started loosing control... and our sanity.

"You can guess the rest. We found Nawa. They figured out that he learns differently. They taught him differently. He experienced success for the first time. In addition, his attitude changed. For instance, he loved snowboarding and quickly figured out a simple Nawa lesson. Do your work... go snowboarding. Don't do your work... sit on campus all weekend. We could never pull that off at home.

"Nawa is a pioneer in experiential learning. That, it turns out, is how our kid likes to learn. I will leave the details of why non-traditional learners respond to the experiential approach to the experts and professionals at Nawa. I can't express our amazement, when at parents weekend, we met with our son's teachers and looked at his work. Finally, something was working.

"There is another ingredient that needs to be discussed and is very important to me. It's about the people... the staff at Nawa... the emotional environment. The warmth and caring came across immediately. I was so impressed meeting with our son's teachers. The commitment and pride was evident from the first moment we stepped on campus.

"Bottom line. Perhaps we didn't know all of this when we chose Nawa, but we certainly know it now."

To faculty and staff at Nawa,

"We feel very fortunate that our grandson Max is attending Nawa as he has only been at the school for the last 8 months, including 2 summer sessions, and in that time has made a remarkable turnaround. From failing in his school studies, being depressed and unmotivated, he is now making excellent grades, participating in school activities and is on the student council. We owe this incredible improvement to the excellent teaching, guiding, care and concern of the teachers and staff at Nawa. Thank you so much."