Academics
At Pacific Quest, academics are integrated into the experiences students are already having each day. Through our partnership with Mountain Point Academy, an accredited online school, students can earn high school credit through experiential learning, guided reflection, research-based reading and writing, therapeutic assignments, and authentic assessments.
Rather than separating academics from the rest of the Pacific Quest experience, coursework connects learning with the land, physical activity, relationships, personal growth, and increasing responsibility within the community.
During a typical stay, students may complete five integrated courses totaling 2.5 high school credits, with additional credit available based on documented hours in Outdoor Fitness.
Coursework is aligned with Pacific Quest’s therapeutic curriculum, Common Core State Standards, and applicable national standards.
Academics At A Glance
2.5
High School Credits During a Typical Stay
5
Integrated Experiential Courses
90 Days
Designed Around a Typical Pacific Quest Stay
Cognia Accredited
Academic Partner: Mountain Point Academy
How Experiential Learning Works
EXPERIENCE
Students participate in meaningful daily activities — from physical fitness and agriculture to cultural learning, land stewardship, service, and community leadership.
REFLECT
Reading, guided writing, therapeutic assignments, activity logs, and personal reflection help students connect their experiences to broader academic concepts.
DEMONSTRATE
Students demonstrate learning through authentic assessments, documented skill development, written work, projects, presentations, and supervised participation.
Academic Courses
01 | Quest SEL
0.5 High School Credit
Social-Emotional Learning Through Reflection
Quest SEL connects Pacific Quest’s clinical work with structured social-emotional learning. Students develop skills for understanding and expressing emotions, managing difficult feelings, recognizing patterns in thoughts and behaviors, strengthening relationships, and identifying personal values and goals.
Over approximately 90 days, students complete 23 guided writing activities exploring their experiences, emotions, coping strategies, family relationships, values, and vision for the future.
The course concludes with an opportunity for students to share what they have learned and how they have grown through a presentation to their community.
Coursework includes:
23 guided reflections • Social-emotional skill development • Personal values and goals • Final community presentation
02 | Outdoor Fitness
0.5 Credit at 60 Hours · Up to 1.0 Credit at 120 Hours
Building Strength, Endurance & Healthy Routines
Outdoor Fitness gives students consistent opportunities to develop strength, endurance, and physical confidence through movement incorporated into daily life at Pacific Quest.
Activities may include hiking across varied terrain, agricultural work, moving and preparing materials, ocean-based activities, and individualized fitness exercises.
Students establish personal fitness goals, document their activity, and track their progress over time. Through consistent movement, they also develop greater awareness of the relationship between physical activity, energy, focus, stress regulation, and daily functioning.
Coursework includes:
Personal fitness goals • Documented activity hours • Outdoor movement • Agricultural activity • Individual fitness
03 | Cultural Anthropology of Hawaiʻi
0.5 High School Credit · Approximately 60 Hours
Learning From Culture, History & Place
Living and learning on Hawaiʻi Island provides students with an opportunity to explore Native Hawaiian culture, history, language, and relationships with the land.
Students study topics including the ahupuaʻa land system, Polynesian voyaging and navigation, moʻolelo, the cultural and genealogical significance of kalo, Hawaiian language and protocol, the Hawaiian Kingdom, the overthrow of the Kingdom, and the modern Hawaiian cultural renaissance.
Learning combines hands-on cultivation, historical and primary-source readings, and direct engagement with the places where students live and work.
Students complete a written reflection for each unit, connecting what they are studying with their experiences on the land and within the Pacific Quest community.
Coursework includes:
Hawaiian history • ʻĀina and agriculture • Language and protocol • Primary-source study • Written reflection
04 | Field Skills & Environmental Studies
0.5 High School Credit · Approximately 60 Hours
Field Skills and Environmental Studies combines sustainable agriculture, environmental awareness, and practical outdoor skills through hands-on learning.
Students begin by demonstrating competency in safe tool use before progressing through horticultural activities involving soil preparation, planting, transplanting, garden maintenance, composting, responsible water use, and identifying common pests and plant diseases.
Additional learning may include plant identification, weather observation, knot tying, safe fire building, and outdoor navigation.
Skills are demonstrated under the supervision of trained adults, documented as students progress, and connected to a final written reflection about what they have learned through caring for the land.
Coursework includes:
Tool safety • Horticulture • Composting • Plant identification • Navigation • Practical outdoor skils
05 | Campus Stewardship
0.5 High School Credit · 30 Service Hours
From Community Member to Community Contributor
Campus Stewardship gives students opportunities to practice leadership, service, mentorship, and responsibility as they progress through the Pacific Quest program.
Students in later phases may welcome and mentor new students, facilitate peer teaching, contribute to shared meals and campus responsibilities, and support other students through important program milestones.
Students document 30 hours of service, complete an essay exploring an important teaching or mentoring relationship, and develop a final project to share with their community or family.
The course reflects an important part of the Pacific Quest developmental process: moving from receiving support within a community toward becoming an active contributor and source of support for others.
Coursework includes:
30 documented service hours • Peer mentorship • Leadership • Community responsibility • Final project
Academic progress does not have to stop while a student receives residential treatment.
Through experiential coursework, students can continue earning high school credit while developing practical skills, engaging with their environment, and applying what they learn in meaningful, real-world settings.
Pacific Quest collaborates with Mountain Point Academy, a Cognia-accredited school, to provide academic credit for completed coursework.
Credit earned and acceptance of transferred credit may vary based on course completion, documented participation, length of stay, and the policies of the student’s receiving school.
