| Description |
This project is a qualitative evaluation of an outdoor outreach program known as Step Out and examines the phenomenon known as the adventure gap from the experiences of past participants who live in South Salt Lake, Utah. More specifically, I present the findings of interviews from nine ethnically diverse youth from various Promise South Salt Lake centers. For my research, I conducted one-on-one, semi-formal interviews to answer the research question, "How do youth of color conceptualize the outdoors after participating with the Step Out program?" The findings brought to surface various positive engagements and constraints that the youth helped identify through their experience with Step Out. The data collected push forth the need for more resources and a potential long term curriculum that can provide diverse youth with more positive engagements in the great outdoors-that are long-lasting, more impactful and effective. The constraints that were revealed, in terms of outdoor participation for ethnically diverse youth, align closely to the literature surrounding the adventure gap. This includes things such as time, money, access, and cultural barriers. In order for programs, like Step Out, to bridge the adventure gap, they must understand the deeper needs and sociocultural aspects of the communities and people they are serving. |
