S5E3: Raising Resilient Kids: Nature Connections, Mental Health, and College Readiness with Mario Mendez of Wilderness Youth Project (WYP)

If you're ready to take the next step in your admissions journey, visit https://admittedly.co/apply to register for a free Family Action Call with one of our advisors. 

Parents worry about grades, test scores, and résumés. But underneath all of that, what really shapes a student who can thrive in competitive academics and in life? 

In this episode, Thomas Caleel talks with Mario Mendez, Community Accountability Manager and Senior Program Staff at Wilderness Youth Project (WYP) in Santa Barbara, about how nature, unstructured exploration, and real-world challenge help kids build the resilience, awareness, and confidence they need long before they ever apply to college.

Mario draws on decades of experience working with young people in South America, the Middle East, Europe, and the United States. Together, he and Thomas unpack how nature-based programs can support mental health, reduce stress, and help students develop a stronger sense of self – and why those qualities matter so much in highly selective college admissions.

Key Topics & Takeaways

• Education beyond the classroom
  Why real education includes social emotional learning, self-awareness, and lived experience, not just what happens in class.
  
  

• Nature as a tool for awareness and belonging
  How tracking, observation, and time outdoors teach kids to notice their surroundings, read a room, and understand their impact on others.
  
  

• Access, equity, and Bridge to Nature
  How programs like WYP’s Bridge to Nature serve under resourced students, and why nature connection is not just for “outdoorsy” or privileged families.
  
  

• What families can do anywhere
  Practical ways to build nature connection in cities and suburbs using small routines: a single tree, a window, a daily walk, or attention to seasonal changes.
  
  

• Storytelling, resilience, and admissions
  How a rich inner life, curiosity, and the ability to tell your own story show up in college essays and in the way students move through school and life.
  
  

This conversation is especially helpful for parents who see anxiety, burnout, or disconnection in their kids and want something more meaningful than another activity on the schedule. It is also for families thinking about highly selective admissions who recognize that resilience, authenticity, and self-knowledge are just as important as GPA and test scores.

Links to Wilderness Youth Project, Mario’s recommended resources, and related nature-connection tools:

1. Nature Connection and Outdoor School Directory

2. Learn More About Wilderness Youth Project

3. Read About Stress Busters 

For more support on building thoughtful, strategic paths to college for your student, visit admittedly.co and follow @admittedlyco on Instagram and TikTok.