WYOMING – NOLS (National Outdoor Leadership School) President John Gans announced on November 28 his plans to retire at the end of 2019. He is the fifth president in the school’s 53-year history and its longest-serving leader. Named White House Champion for Change “for his commitment to youth, wilderness, and leadership” in 2012, Gans will leave an enduring legacy highlighted by strong financial landscape, formalization of wilderness leadership curriculum, and a commitment to students in the outdoors.
In his time, NOLS has been continuously accredited since 1995 by the Association for Experiential Education (AEE), acquired the Wilderness Medicine Institute, received the 1999 Leave No Trace Partnership Award, and the Outdoor Industry Association Inspiration Award for sponsoring the first all-African American team to attempt to climb North America’s highest peak.
Founded in 1965 by Paul Petzoldt, the Lander-based nonprofit wilderness school grew from classrooms in Wyoming’s rugged Wind River mountain range evolving to become the premier outdoor education school, operating 16 campuses around the world and serving 28,363 students last year. Under Gans’ leadership, the school increased overall income by 300% and grew its faculty and staff from 475 to 1,296. NOLS contributed $1.9 million in financial aid awards in 2018 reflecting 437% growth in available needs-based scholarship funding during Gans’ tenure.
Gans himself started his NOLS journey as a scholarship student in 1979 on a Semester in Kenya, later serving as director of NOLS Alaska, admissions & marketing director, and operations director before assuming the role of president in October 1995. He has been a part of the school for 38 years and at the conclusion of 2019, he will have served as the school’s executive director and president for 24 years.
“John led NOLS into the future,” said Marc Randolph, Netflix co-founder and Chair of the NOLS Board of Trustees. “He built a leadership team that supported innovation and financial acumen, and evolved the school from an institution focused solely on the outdoor classroom to one that puts students first while achieving financial stability.”
When Gans took the helm as NOLS executive director, the school was celebrating its 30th anniversary. He inherited an organization facing flattening student enrollment. Looking forward, Gans directed the school’s leadership team to achieve a number of “firsts” for NOLS, including long-term strategic planning and empowering staff and instructors be a part of the vision for the school.
“I am exceedingly proud of what we have accomplished together over these past 24 years,” said Gans. “Together, NOLS has made the world a better, more inclusive place and it has been an honor of the highest order to serve as the fifth leader of this remarkable organization.”
Gans added his immediate plans include more time spent camping in the outdoors and exploring wilderness with his family and corgi.
The NOLS Board of Trustees will form a presidential search committee next month consisting of trustees and other members of the NOLS community. The search committee, chaired by trustee Greg Avis, will determine timing, scope, and process as the school endeavors to conduct a global search for its next President.
