BOULDER, CO – Outward Bound USA is proud to announce that it has been awarded a $10 million grant from Lilly Endowment Inc. through Character Development Through Youth Programs, a Lilly Endowment initiative designed to help youth-serving organizations create, test, implement and sustain strategies that support character development in the young people they serve in chapters and affiliates throughout the nation. Outward Bound USA is one of 14 organizations being funded through the initiative.
This gift will propel Outward Bound USA’s Character Compass initiative—a comprehensive effort designed to expand and innovate its community-based outdoor education programs and ensure fair access to pivotal learning for students across the country.
Anchored in character traits like courage, compassion, and curiosity, Character Compass will build and deepen program outcomes and engagement pathways for youth nationwide and strengthen the national infrastructure that supports this work.
“From the earliest days of its grantmaking, Lilly Endowment has supported projects to encourage character development, especially among young people,” said Ted Maple, the Endowment’s Vice President for Education and Youth Programs. “We are heartened by the thoughtful and strategic approaches these youth-serving organizations are taking to support children and youth in developing character traits that will be important for them in their future roles as individuals, family members and citizens.”
We know that character isn’t formed all at once—but it can be powerfully sparked. Outward Bound experiences act as catalytic ‘lightning bolts’—short, intense, and often transformational,” said Ginger Naylor, CEO of Outward Bound USA. “We are deeply grateful for Lilly Endowment’s shared vision and for its funding of our commitment to build sustained pathways, repeat engagement opportunities, and wraparound support that help turn the initial spark into a lasting flame of confidence, compassion, and curiosity.
Bea Armstrong, Executive Director of the North Carolina Outward Bound School, shared, “This meaningful gift will ensure we can expand access for students to learn there is more in them than they know. These valuable skills will connect them more deeply to their peers and to their communities. These skills will last a lifetime.”
This funding comes at a defining moment for Outward Bound—marked by significant momentum, strategic clarity, and bold aspirations for growth. With a nationally aligned character development curriculum in development, a decade of evaluation practices shaping its approach, and a $50 million campaign fueling infrastructure and program expansion, Outward Bound is uniquely positioned to deepen and scale its impact. In just the past year, Outward Bound has secured more than $31 million in leadership gifts toward this vision, including a landmark $15 million commitment from the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation.
For more information about Outward Bound USA and its innovative programs, please visit www.outwardbound.org.
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