Program Details

The Brown Ledge Gap Year will begin with a documentary training session at Brown Ledge Camp in late August. The camp is located on Malletts Bay on the shores of Lake Champlain, just north of Burlington, Vermont. Participants will spend four weeks learning the essentials of video production, audio production and digital photography and examining the history, techniques and ethics of documentary work. We will introduce the cities we will be living in and set up individual community-service projects and internships. In addition to this work and study, there will be many opportunities for fun and relaxation (including waterskiing, sailing, tennis, and other activities), taking advantage of the Lake and the camp’s facilities.

After the training session, we will take a Road Trip to our first city, Salt Lake City,  a wonderful base for exploring the mountain West.  Salt Lake is a great place to study the tensions between Mormonism and secular values and also to explore environmentalism and land-use battles. We will stay in Salt Lake for six weeks, experiencing what it is like to Live Independently in a new city. Participants will work half-time doing an Internship or Community Service, developing job skills and learning more about the city. Finally, they will create their own Documentary, using the medium of their choice—video, audio, photography, or some combination thereof.

After Salt Lake City, we will move on to New Orleans, where we will repeat the process of adjusting to a new city and a new job, of learning about the issues and identifying documentary subjects. The formal part of the program will end before the winter holidays, but program staffers will continue to offer advice and counsel to help participants make the most of the Rest of the Year. At the beginning of June, we will reconnect in Vermont to see each other again and compare experiences.

2010 Calendar:

  • August 22nd – Arrive at Brown Ledge in Malletts Bay, Vermont
  • August 22nd – Sept. 18th – Orientation/Documentary Training
  • Sept. 18th – Sept. 28th – Road Trip to Salt Lake City, Utah
  • Sept. 29th – Nov. 5th – Residency in Salt Lake City, Utah
  • Nov.5th – Nov. 10th – Road Trip to New Orleans, Louisiana
  • Nov.10th – Dec.18th – Residency in New Orleans, Louisiana
  • Dec. 18th – Students leave New Orleans, Louisiana for the holidays or their next adventure!
  • June 4th – 6th, 2011 – Reunion at Brown Ledge

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