BY SHIRLEY G. BROSIUS
FOR THE PATRIOT-NEWS
Thursday, April 29, 1999

Today's classroom is the kitchen, and the large round table in the center might symbolize the philosophy of The Circle School, where students and school personnel share an equal voice.

Four students, a staff person (as teachers are called), and a guest are brainstorming about what foods to carry on the Appalachian Trail during a 100-mile hike they will take later this spring.

"What about bagels?" asks Jancey Rietmulder-Stone of Lewisberry, age 13. Jancey has been attending the school, where her mother is a staff person for the past 10 years. Admission is open to students as young as 3. About 35 students are enrolled.

"I wonder how long they would stay fresh," ponders Brook Euler, 24, of Avon, N.C., a former student and staff person who has returned to organize the hike.

"I am turning 18 while I am out there," says Joanna Bodnyk of Kutztown. "I want to take dried strawberries, and see if I can come up with some kind of [biscuit] I can make into a shortcake. I am really excited about being out there on my birthday."

As the students unfold a map to determine how close they'll be to a store or a food-drop point on Bodnyk's birthday, a cell phone in the middle of the table rings.

"Good morning. The Circle School. Joanna speaking. May I help you?" Bodnyk says, as she withdraws from the discussion to answer the call.

This will be the fourth and longest backpacking trip students at the school, located on 2 acres in Swatara Township, just off Derry Street, have taken since Euler served on the staff, three years ago

The private school is run by the students who decide what they will study. "The school is about pursuing your passion," says dee Vogt of Harrisburg, a staff person who serves on the school's Natural Resources Group. "All of Euler's talk about backpacking got other people sparked," Vogt said. "If they didn't want to do it, we wouldn't be doing it."

As Bodnyk rejoins the conversation, she says being connected with nature is an important part of her life. A senior, she attended The Circle School through seventh grade and returned to it midway through her sophomore year.

"I write poetry, and it affects that - gives me background for it," she says. "Also, it is sort of our gym class, for those of us who choose to do it. I am not real good at other organized sports, so this is my physical thing. The other piece is the social aspect that I get from being out there with these people who are really special to me. It is teamwork, and it is problem-solving, and it is really cool."

As Vogt's co-sponsor of the trip, Bodnyk had to file required paperwork, such as permission forms with the school's governing body. She's working on an itinerary and an equipment checklist.

"We have to write motions," she says. "With dee, I feel responsible for making sure that we know what we are getting ourselves into and that we are prepared to deal with it, as far as equipment and knowledge and planning beforehand."

Conner Tyrrell, 13, of Lewisberry, who has attended the school for seven years, says he's learned a lot as treasurer for the group, which has raised about $2,000 to finance its venture.

"It costs a lot more than we thought," he says.

About half the proceeds came from pizza sales at the school, cooked up by Rietmulder-Stone with others assisting.

And each member of the group, which includes Joanna's sister, Catherine Bodnyk, 11, of New Cumberland, earned first-aid and CPR certifications to prepare for emergencies.

Euler, now completing graduate work in environmental education at Goddard College in Vermont, holds Wilderness First Responder certification.

"There is a remarkable amount of pre-trip work that went into this," Euler says, adding that responsibilities at the school had to be delegated for the time period when the group will be away.

According to Vogt, the value of such student-planned experiences lies in the unwritten curriculum of human interaction.

This time, after beginning preparations, two students were found to be neglectful of their responsibilities.

"Things are done democratically," Vogt says. "As a group, we had to struggle with a decision of how to deal with this. That process ... was an incredible experience."

The group voted to confront the offenders and ask for improved performance.

"We eventually had to vote to exclude them from the trip," Vogt says.

"I had to be the one to give them the letters," says Joanna Bodnyk. "I was uncomfortable. I was disappointed that they weren't going."

But Vogt says students are empowered by such experiences.

And the students say they like having their say and like the freedom to study whatever interests them. On this day, the hike has center stage.

Reprinted by permission. April 24, 1999 The Patriot-News