August 31, 1998
Contact: Jay Roberts
 (804) 924-6115
 jwr6u@virginia.edu

STUDENTS, BUSINESS LEADERS CAN SCALE NEW HEIGHTS
IN U.VA.'S LEARN-BY-DOING PROGRAM

	Students of all ages can tackle a new challenge at the
University of Virginia this year: "the Pamper Pole."
	Standing 30-feet tall, the pole is one of 11 obstacles
presenting physical and mental challenges to individuals and teams
participating in U.Va.'s newly expanded experiential learning program,
Poplar Ridge. 
	Participants in Poplar Ridge engage in group problem-solving
while encountering diverse obstacles, often on a secluded eight-acre
wooded site behind Zehmer Hall.  The process of taking risks,
communicating goals, modifying plans and coming to group consensus helps
individuals learn about leadership and team building, organizers say. 
	Operated by U.Va.'s Intramural-Recreational Sports Department,
Poplar Ridge is experiential education -- a means of learning by doing.
It offers more than 20 activities and simulations and has three distinct
high-ropes events: the Pamper Pole, the Dangle Duo and the Circuit
Course.
	 Participants must climb up and then jump off the wooden Pamper
Pole -- while teammates hold their safety lines.  
	The Dangle Duo and Circuit Course are 60-foot-high activities
that emphasize individual risk taking.  "They both incorporate an
exhilarating 200-foot, zip-line ride back down to earth," said Jay
Roberts, Popular Ridge director.
	Poplar Ridge participants learn by analyzing their behaviors as
they take risks and work together in an unfamiliar environment. 
	"Experiential learning programs allow people to hold a mirror up
to themselves.  They can see how they measured up.  Did they assume a
leadership role?  Communicate their needs clearly?  Show support to
others?  It's a learning process that engages the individual entirely,"
said Roberts, a trainer certified through U.Va.'s Organizational
Training and Development Department.
						MORE
2
	Created for U.Va. students in 1994, the program commonly known
as "the ropes course" 				
has become popular, both with people within U.Va. and outside it. To
date, more than 5,000 					
people, including students, U.Va. work teams, business leaders and
representatives of civic and community organizations, have tested their
skills in the program.
	With its expanded facilities, Poplar Ridge will become
increasingly popular, Roberts believes. "The expanded program gives us
more flexibility. We can design our experiential exercises to match an
organization's needs.  Such experiences foster discussions that
integrate individual and team learning back in the work place."
	Cost of Poplar Ridge programs vary, according to type and length
of sessions and participants' affiliation with the University. Typical
programs for student groups range between $12 and $25 per person.
University-associated businesses and professional groups are charged
$30-$50 per person. For cost and program information, call (804)
924-3791.
								###

Television reporters should contact the TV News Office at (804)
924-7550.