YOU BELONG

A Word from our Leadership

“You belong.”

There are four areas of human development that are impacted on an Outward Bound course: Courage, Reflection, Physical Engagement and Belonging. We refer to these quadrants as our “Domains of Thriving.” Each domain includes two specific social-emotional skills on which our instructors focus. The skills we teach under Belonging are Teamwork and Group Relationships. In 2022 – the first year of full in-person programming since the pandemic – we saw notable increases in students reporting that our programs impacted their sense of belonging. But what does that mean?

A sense of belonging is more than simply being acquainted with people or places. It is centered on gaining understanding, respect, connectedness, and support from members of the group and providing the same attention to others. To have a sense of belonging means you matter. At Chesapeake Bay Outward Bound School (CBOBS), we strove in 2022 to instill a sense of belonging across our vast community -- from students, educators, schools across the greater Baltimore and Washington DC regions to our donors.

In return, CBOBS’ dedicated donors showed us how much CBOBS matters to them and to the communities we serve. The unprecedented generosity by donors, like you, helped us raise over $2.5 million dollars in 2022 and provided critical scholarship dollars to give even more youth from underserved communities a better sense of belonging. We are grateful and humbled by your support – thank you!

Big changes also occurred in 2022. CBOBS’ long-time Executive Director, Ginger Naylor, answered the call to lead Outward Bound USA as their new CEO. We are so grateful for Ginger’s vision and service over the years. With Ginger’s exit, we were privileged to welcome Kristen Komlosy to CBOBS as our new Executive Director. Kristen is a seasoned executive with an extensive track record of successful leadership, and we are delighted to have Kristen at the helm.

Onward!

Brett Rogers
Chair of the Board