Rippleffect Adventure Academy

After-School Program

Overview

For the 2024-2025 School Year, our Adventure Academy After-School Program is offering 4 sessions with unique enrichment opportunities. Check out the session descriptions below to find an exciting opportunity that meets your child’s interests. For all of these sessions, connecting youth to the outdoors and providing a space to explore, form new friendships and gain confidence is our priority!

When: Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 2:10-5:30 each day the Portland Public School District is in session. Families may sign up for one or two days per week.

Who: open to 2nd-4th graders at Longfellow and Ocean Ave Elementary Schools

Pickup: Participants are picked up from school in our 15-passenger bus and brought to a range of adventure locations which vary depending on the session. Parent pickup is at 5:30 at our office within the State Street Church at 159 State Street.

Session 1: Community & Climbing (9 weeks, September 3rd - October 30th)

Ready to climb and reach new heights? For this 9-week session, participants will head to our Rippleffect Outdoor Community Center to experience teambuilding initiatives, climb our rock wall, and take on our ropes course! Participants will establish a supportive community and build confidence and leadership skills through healthy risk taking. Afternoon adventures will also include learning outdoor living skills, hiking on the nearby Fore River Portland Trail, and supporting our local trail system through trail cleanups and practicing Leave No Trace Principles!  

Session 2: Environmental connection & creativity (7 weeks, November 5th-December 18th)

Unleash creativity while exploring the beauty of nature by blending art with outdoor adventure! During this 7-week session, participants will build a unique community and connection to nature through creativity. Environmental art projects may range from cyanotype printing and building fairy houses on hiking trails to constructing larger initiatives inspired by Andy Goldsworthy at our ROCC! Dive into the world of art using natural materials and found objects at our local forests, beaches and parks.

Session 3: Winter adventure (11 weeks, January 7th - march 26th)

Winter does not stop us from enjoying the outdoors! For our Winter Adventure session, we will venture out to enjoy winter activities such as sledding, snow shoeing, winter hiking, and making our favorite winter treat - hot chocolate made on outdoor cooking stoves! This session is made for youth who are excited to spend time in the outdoors in cold conditions. Embrace the chill, explore nature, and create adventurous memories!

session 4: ocean explorers (8 weeks, april 1st - may 28th)

Dive into the wonders of the ocean for our Spring session! Participants will spend much of their time on the coast and at the beach examining the intertidal zone through quadrat sampling, doing beach cleanups, making seaweed art paper, plankton sampling, taking a boat ride on the bay, and more!  This hands-on program aims to inspire curiosity and foster a deep appreciation for our oceanic world and the precious biodiversity it holds.

Enrollment for the school year is now open. If space is full, please sign up for our waitlist and we will reach out to you via email and phone call if space becomes available!

Tuition:

Tuition:

  • $35 for Tuesdays

  • $45 for Wednesday (extended day)

  • $65 for Parent Teacher Conference days

Tuition is charged by session as indicated during enrollment.

Limited scholarship funding is available! Please submit a scholarship application, located here, within 48 hours of submitting your child's enrollment request.

What to bring each day:

Please ensure that your child comes to Rippleffect each day with an afternoon snack, water bottle, and clothes to be comfortable outside for around 2 hours.

PROGRAM READINESS skills:

All of our After-School participants must be prepared and able to:

  • Participants must be willing and able to spend up to two hours outside at our local adventure locations, including during rain and snow (severe weather conditions will result in moving programming indoors). 

  • Participants must be able to participate independently, or with reasonable accommodations/modifications that do not conflict with the program structure. 

  • Participants must be able to respect the public land and facilities that we use during our programming. This includes following the 7 Leave No Trace Principles.  

  • Participants must be able to stay with the group while in public settings, and while transitioning onto and out of our bus transportation. 

  • Participants must be able to take and follow directions and instructions from guides. 

  • Participants must interact and participate in a manner that is physically and emotionally safe for themselves and others. 

  • Participants must be able to advocate for personal care pertaining to bathroom needs.

  • Participants must respect others (listening and following directions; using appropriate language; keeping hands and feet to self). 

  • Participants must maintain self-control (anger management).

Along with our full-time team members, who you can meet here, we’d like to introduce you to our team of After-School Guides!

Meet our After-School Team

Madi Worthington - Camp and After-School Program Manager

Madi is the force behind our After School Program. She joined Rippleffect in the spring of 2021 as a seasonal guide and fell in love with the Ripple mission and style. In September of 2021 Madi joined the full-time team to continue guiding and working with Rippleffect’s Adventure Academy After-School program. 

Madi grew up in San Francisco and spent time every summer in Maine visiting family. She nurtured an appreciation and admiration for the outdoors through backpacking and adventuring in the Sierra Nevada’s. After earning a BA in Theater from UCLA, Madi worked as a theater artist and educator for four years in the Bay Area. Madi moved to Portland, Maine in 2019 to work in theater education before switching gears to follow her passion for the outdoors. She started working for a nature preschool, became a Registered Maine Guide, Wilderness First Responder, and discovered Rippleffect!

Madi lives in Portland with her partner Adam where they spend their free time hiking, camping, juggling in the park, and playing with their cat Infinity

Noel Potter - Lead Guide and Program Coordinator

Noel started working for Rippleffect in the fall of 2021 as a guide and has been involved in everything from sea kayaking to ice climbing to After-School Program since!

Noel grew up in Pennsylvania, but time visiting family, attending summer camp in Maine, and studying at Bates College have fostered a love for Maine and northern New England. Time spent studying geology and working in the ski industry have grown his love for and skill in the outdoors, while time working at his beloved summer camp taught him the joys of working with young people. Now he can combine those passions at Rippleffect!

When Noel isn’t outdoors, he enjoys baseball, Irish music and dance, and sci-fi books and movies.

Stephen “Zam” Zamierowski - Guide

Zam started with Rippleffect as a guide in the summer of 2022 and joined the After-School Adventure Academy team in 2023. 

Zam grew up as a free-range kid in New Hampshire and found a love for outdoor leadership in high school and college.  At UNH, he was an Upward Bound counselor and guide, and the director of UNH Freshman Camp.  Zam continued his coaching and mentoring activity during his business career working with young professionals and entrepreneurs, achieving certification as a Deloitte FX Facilitator in several subjects including team building, group problem-solving, business networking and interpersonal communication.

In his retirement from his corporate career, Zam has returned to New England’s woods and waters to further his outdoor education and stewardship work at Rippleffect, Ketcha Outdoors and the Scarborough Land Trust.