MAAP News

First Annual Alternative / Charter School Day Held At Camp Ripley

The first annual Alternative / Charter School Day was held last Friday, March 26th at Camp Ripley, near Randall Minnesota.  Education Liaison specialists Dave Bambenek and Mike Bellos arranged for this eye-opening experience.  15 MAAP members from various Charter Schools, Area Learning Centers and On-Line Schools participated.  The group was provided information on the many uses of the Camp, it's historical background and the economic impact of the Camp.  It was extremely impressive to see how environmentally conscious the "Guards" are.  Many students from around Minnesota visit their Environmental Center each year and take advantage of  the wealth of information that they have and are collecting.

The group got an opportunity to tour some of the special service areas.  The "Support Maintenance Shop" was quite a facility.  They repair everything from tanks to radios to night-vision optical devices.  The group also got an opportunity to visit the "Close Combat Tactical Trainers".  These trainers provided us with replicated "real life" experiences of being in a tank or a helicopter.  Below are some of the pictures from our day at Camp Ripley.

On behalf of MAAP, I would like to thank Dave and Mike and the National Guard for making this opportunity available to us.  We look forward to coming back next fall when we host the fall STARS Conference from Camp Ripley.  This should be a great opportunity for our students as well.