Living at HMI

Community is more than a buzzword at HMI.

At HMI, students, faculty, and staff make a lasting impact. HMI faculty are backpacking instructors, running partners, and mentors. Our alumni report close, meaningful relationships with their teachers and peers that help them try new things and become better versions of themselves.

Life on Campus & Beyond

On campus, students take academic classes, live in rustic cabins, and share meals with peers and teachers. They serve as campus stewards, participating in daily chores and spending time in the kitchen helping prepare meals.

When they return to their sending high schools, many of our students aim to recreate the most positive elements of the community they formed at HMI. They seek out authentic relationships, work to reduce their dependence on technology and social media, and rise above negative adolescent social dynamics.

HMI Students Are Saying

“HMI is the type of place where you can walk into any room and people will welcome you, where you have memories with everyone no matter how different you think you are.”

Chloe D.Semester 56 Student

“At HMI, I walk through every moment and day filled with gratitude. Gratitude for the people around me and the love I feel. And more importantly what this place has taught me about myself.”

Sophia R.Semester 55 Student

Explore a Weekday Schedule

Morning

7:25 – Cook Crew: Wake up and make breakfast in the kitchen while listening to music on the speaker.

8:00 – Breakfast: Cheesy eggs, pancakes (plain, blueberry, or chocolate chip), yogurt, granola, and orange juice

8:30 – Morning chores: Tidy up the dining hall and wash the dishes from breakfast

9:00 – Natural Science Lab: Learn about the local watershed by taking stream volume measurements in the Arkansas River

10:30 – Advanced Spanish: Collaborate with your peers on a Spanish scavenger hunt, running around campus interpreting clues

Afternoon

12:00 – Lunch & Announcements: Share out news for the day (and some gratitudes)

1:00 – Pre-Calculus: Take turns working through exponential function problems

2:30 – Afternoon activities: Play spikeball, learn how to knit, or participate in cook crew

3:30 – AP US History: Participate in a mock trial of a famous historian for the misrepresentation of American history

Evening

5:00 – PMX (afternoon exercise): Walk, run, or ride a campus bike on National Forest roads & trails

6:00 – Dinner: A quick round of gratitudes kicks off a meal of lasagna, garlic bread, and salad

8:00 – Study Hall: Revise critical review for U.S. History and read a few chapters of Into the Wild for English class

9:15 – Free time: Hang out, brush teeth, make phone calls home

9:45 – Cabin check-in: Head back to your cabin and stoke the fire one last time before bed

HMI Technology Policy

The HMI student experience is strengthened by our technology policy that encourages face-to-face interaction and minimizes screen time. Each student turns in their cell phone upon arrival at HMI, and refrains from using their phone for the entirety of the semester. Students bring their own laptops which they can use for academic work, entertainment, and communicating home. Students also have access to land-line telephones. Technology use is limited to free periods and evening study hall; meals, cabin time, and backpacking expeditions are completely tech-free.

Find HMI’s Community Expectations & Major School Rules here.

No Cell Phones

Bring Your Own Laptop

WiFi Enabled Campus

Affinity Spaces

HMI students have two faculty-sponsored affinity spaces available to them, the People of Color affinity group, and Q² (Queer & Questioning).

People of Color Affinity Group mission statement

The People of Color affinity group is a safe and welcoming space for students who identify as people of color. We hold this space to celebrate our diverse ethnic backgrounds and to take pride in the cultural richness of the POC experience, as well as to heal together from the emotional trauma we endure, especially in predominantly white areas. This space was brought about by students in Semester 43 (fall 2019). Since then, this community has served as a place to process, engage and learn, and solidarity with one another.

Q² (Queer & Questioning) Affinity Group mission statement

Q² stands for Queer and Questioning and it is an affinity space open to students who identify as LGBTQIA+ and/or are questioning any part of their gender identity or sexual orientation. The space was originally designed by students in Semester 40 (spring 2018) and is now guided by a faculty advisor. This is a safe space meant to build community amongst students with similar identifiers. Meetings include opportunities to discuss identity, share experiences, and simply spend quality time together.