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Join Minnesota's
School of Environmental Studies

       Where Your Passion Meets the Planet

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Explore Your Future

Do you have a passion for the environment and a drive to make a difference? Explore how Minnesota's School for Environmental Studies can transform your education. With immersive, hands-on learning, we go beyond any traditional classroom. Learn more about how you can become an eco-leader. Share your contact for more info!

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Become an Eco-Leader

Ready to take the next step? Get enrolled to start your journey toward becoming an Eco-Leader at Minnesota's School of Environmental Studies. You'll enjoy classes like environmental justice in action, zoo exploration, aquariums, college-level animal science, emergency medical services, model U.N. and more!

APPLY Now

10 Reasons to Choose
Minnesota's Schools of Environmental Studies

 

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High academic rigor.

Challenge yourself. Take advantage of opportunities to earn college credit through 12 Advanced Placement and College in Schools courses.

student at pottery wheel

Environmental focus.

Explore our 12-acre forested campus on the grounds of the MN Zoo. Learn sustainability and renewable energy in our LEED Platinum Certified school.

student in front of an aquarium

Find your purpose.

Explore and solve complex problems through real-world connections and high-level questioning as environmental science, social studies, and language arts intersect.

student presenting pond study data to a community member

Be known.

Our learning pods and house cohorts connect teachers and students in smaller learning communities over two years. 

two students sitting in the woods

Choose your adventure. 

Field study opportunities include the boundary waters, scuba diving, and travel to Australia, Honduras, South Africa, Florida, and more.

student and teacher working on a complex problem

Dive deep.

Immerse yourself in one subject for a week following each trimester. Intensive Theme options include aminal behavior, Model UN, film study, theatre, marine biology, and more.

student presenting environmental research findings to a community member

Student clubs

Join our Green Team, student council, FFA, yearbook, newspaper, black student union, Latinx student union, hiking club, art club, and more.

What is Minnesota's School of Environmental Studies?

The School of Environmental Studies (SES) is a magnet school for juniors and seniors. Established in 1995 as a unique partnership between Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan Public Schools, the City of Apple Valley, and the State of Minnesota (Minnesota Zoo), we offer small, more effective learning communities that provide authentic experiences focused on the environment.

Our campus is located on the Minnesota Zoo grounds and adjacent to Lebanon Hills Regional Park, where wooded trails and diverse wildlife abound. We’re eco-leaders.

  • World’s first student-led LEED Gold Certification (2019), recertified Platinum (2022)
  • Student-led solar energy grant (2021); solar panels provide 30% of our power
  • One of two U.S. high schools with consultative status to the United Nations