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P r o f i l e s i n e x c e l l e n c e M a i n e — A P h oto P o rt r A i t o f t h e P i n e t r ee S tAt e 121 for each student in the woods. Individual projects can range from researching the history of G.W. Hinckley by contacting alumni and reading primary source materi- als; studying the feasibility of keeping five baby mice alive after losing their mother; building a gravity-fed, rain water-based watering system for the greenhouse; or building bridges in swampy areas of the forest trails. For the residential student, the campus has a number of dorm cottages staffed by experienced Campus Living Advisors. Campus Living Advisors provide coaching in a specific curriculum of independent living skills. Profi- ciency and mastery of these skills is necessary to meet graduation standards. "Core values of the academy are respect, responsi- bility, and service to the community," says the school's co-director, Emanuel Pariser. Students at the Maine Academy of Natural Sciences are encouraged to re-engage with their education and complete their education with more self-direction. One of the goals for the students is to grow as critical thinkers and problem solvers by developing habits of heart and mind that lead them to take responsibility for their own actions, as well as for the welfare of other students, their community and their environment. MeANS also plans to play an increasingly important role in its community in relation to food and nutrition issues, supporting projects to feed the homeless and hungry, as well as teaching neighbors effective ways to grow food that will sustain them through times of low and under-employment. MeANS also has plans to serve as an educational hub for the natural sciences, working with local el- ementary, middle and high schools to provide on-site visits, workshops, and lesson plans that local teachers can use to encourage agriculture and forestry projects in their own districts. "Our intent is to work in partnership with the public schools in this state. We understand how hard they work with this student population and we want to reach out to them and collaborate on developing the most successful educational path for students who may require an alternative to the traditional class- room," says Dr. Glenn Cummings, who accepted the position of President and Executive Director of Good Will-Hinckley in 2010 after serving in President Barack Obama's administration as Deputy Assistant Secretary for the U.S. Department of Education. The school's campus will also soon be home to Kenne- bec Valley Community College, giving MeANS students an introduction to college life and access to college-level courses, including the state's only Associate Degree in Agricultural Sciences. Other goals set by MeANS are to significantly broad- en and establish its internship and apprenticeship of- ferings, diversify and expand its fundraising base, and offer year-round courses and a co-curricular schedule. With seemingly limitless opportunities for on-cam- pus, outdoor learning, MeANS will continue to offer more and more types of in-depth, project-based lesson plans that tap into these resources, whether they be in the forests, the river, using alternative energy, or culti- vating new crops. Based on the above enrollment projections and the careful, systematic build-out of its educational program, by the year 2020 the school expects to have graduated several classes of students who will go on to post-secondary success at college, work, and in their communities. Our mission is to graduate actively- engaged students who are proficient in all graduation standards, have completed at least one college- level course, and have used the community and the natural world as their classroom. MeANS teachers and students working together on a hands-on learning project.