Remote island school hosting new learning program

Cuttyhunk Island looking towards Penikese Island

FALMOUTH – A new education initiative is happening at the Penikese Island School on the Elizabeth Islands.

The Gull Island Institute was founded in 2022 after running a pilot program under the auspices of the PIS.

The founders are historians and Harvard lecturers Ana Keilson and Justin Reynolds. Their free springtime class is described as a new immersive liberal arts program with a mission of preparing “a new generation for democratic citizenship and care of the earth through place-based learning.”

Projects have included working on a wildlife sanctuary managed by the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife and a sustainable oyster farm on Cuttyhunk Island.

Students who have completed at least two years of an undergraduate program and recent graduates who will have received their bachelor’s degree are eligible.

To learn more, visit GullIsland.org.

After the island previously served as the site of a leprosy hospital, the Penikese Island School was founded in 1973 as a residential school for troubled boys. Today, it offers “experiential environmental educational programs”.

The island is owned by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.