Viking Magazine - June 2012 - 16

needed to purchase 800 acres near Bemidji,
Minn., and to build Skogfjorden.
By the early 1970s, Skogfjorden's
enrollment had grown to 400, with
three-quarters of campers receiving
Sons of Norway scholarships. Skogfjorden
was operating at maximum capacity.
" In those days, we always had
a waiting list, " says former dean Carol
" Kristin " Flessland. " Every single bed
was full. "
An article about Skogfjorden in a
Norwegian newspaper caught the attention
of Ola Kjeldstad, a teacher living in
Trondheim, Norway. " I was fascinated
by the idea of teaching Norwegian to
American kids, " Kjeldstad says. He began
working at Skogfjorden in 1975 and
returned eight more summers, recruiting
several Norwegians to join him on staff
during those years. Kjeldstad also worked
with Flessland to develop a language curriculum
for the village. " I was impressed
that they managed to gather, fi rst of all,
the kids. But also they had a very good
staff there. ... They were good people,
and they were very good teachers, "
Kjeldstad says.
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With much of the existing site built,
Skogfjorden's emphasis shifted from
physical growth to programming. Dahl
says of the staff's focus in the 1990s: " We
reconsidered the entire program and the
entire property and started doing some
things very differently. " In nearly 30
years at the helm, Dahl's expertise as an
educational psychologist has facilitated
changes and refi nements to many aspects
of the program. " It's all about taking
what you have and stretching with it.
Such remarkable things are possible in
our setting, " Dahl says.
A notable asset for Skogfjorden has
been its high return rates for staff and
villagers. Senior staff have impressive
tenures, with a few returning more than
20 years. This longevity carries over to
camper retention as well. Dahl encourages
villagers to attend for 10 summers, or
" gå for ti! " and many do. " Our returning
rate is among the highest [of CLV's 15 villages], "
Dahl says.
Dahl welcomes alumni staff to return
with their own children, and when
they do, the refi nements in programming
are apparent to them. Alumni
staff member Jennifer Prestholdt writes
in her blog: " As a parent, I feel that
Skogfjorden is even better than when I
was a villager or on staff. ... The staff
are as creative and energetic as they
were in my day, but they do a better
job of making this a total Norwegian
immersion experience. "
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Viking Magazine - June 2012

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Viking Magazine - June 2012
