At the heart of Thacher’s founding philosophy is a belief in taking on real responsibility and positive risks. In its exciting horseback and outdoor opportunities, Thacher offers calibrated challenges that can bring significant achievements for students who embrace them.

A tradition as old as the School itself, the Horse Program is a central part of every student’s Thacher experience and makes us unique among independent schools. Each ninth grader spends the year learning to care for and ride a horse from Thacher’s herd. Horse and rider are matched in the first week of school, keeping in mind the student’s prior experience. New tenth and eleventh graders choose one athletic season to participate in the Horse Program, and many students choose to ride even after they have fulfilled their requirement.

With the mountains of the Los Padres National Forest at our back door and other wilderness areas close by, the Outdoor Program is another Thacher “natural.” Fostering both learning and pleasure, camping and outdoor activities belong to a long, rich Thacher tradition. In spring and fall, the program offers instruction in outdoor sports such as rock- and ice-climbing, winter camping, and sea and river kayaking.

In these programs, the School believes in placing real responsibility in the hands of students, who must consider safety and consideration—for themselves and for others—as they belay a fellow climber, maneuver their boat down Class III rapids, or divide up the last of the rice at dinner. We know that by doing this, they gain a clearer, enlarged sense of self that will serve them in every aspect of their lives, at Thacher and beyond.