Waskowitz Outdoor School
Outdoor Education
Director:
Resident Manager:
Secretary:
**NEW PHONE NUMBER** 206-631-7626
Founded in 1947 by a group led by future superintendent Carl Jensen, Waskowitz Outdoor School is recognized as a leader in the field of residential outdoor education. The Carl Jensen Environmental Education Center at Camp Waskowitz serves the students of the Highline Schools, as well as students from surrounding schools and districts, through environmental education and team building programs. When not in use by student groups, the facilities are available to outside groups for rent. Our office is located in Burien at the Woodside site at 18367-8th Avenue South. Our program site is located in North Bend, Washington at Camp Waskowitz. For more information on our programs or facility rentals, contact our office at (206) 631-7626.
Camp Waskowitz was built by the Civilian Conservation Corp (CCC) in 1935 at its present location and was named Camp North Bend. After the CCC was disbanded, the Camp was sold and later renamed after Fritz Waskowitz from the Chicago area. Fritz Waskowitz had been a football player and captain at the University of Washington before he became a pilot in World War II, was shot down and killed. The facility was renamed in his honor. Highline School District began sending students to Waskowitz in 1947 and later bought the property in 1957. Carl Jensen, then Superintendent of Highline School District, convinced the Highline High School student body to use funds raised for a new sports stadium to buy the property with a promise that the school district would reimburse their fund. Some time later, Superintendent Jensen and the Highline School District made additional purchases of surrounding land that increased the Camp Waskowitz acreage to its present 372 acres. Today, Camp Waskowitz is a State and National Historic Preservation site and is one of only two remaining CCC Camps in the United States with all of the original buildings still standing. Since the inception of the Outdoor Education program in 1947, over 200,000 students have experienced this school in the woods.
