(FORTUNE Magazine) – Outward Bound in New York City is giving new meaning to the phrase ''I'll take Manhattan.'' Thanks to a three-year-old program, students from seven public schools can now be seen rock-climbing at the Cloisters, canoeing in the East River, and traversing the rigging of the bark Peking, docked at the South Street Seaport. It's all part of a program, supported by such local companies as AT&T, Chase Manhattan Bank, and Exxon, to make school a more exciting place for students + at risk of dropping out. Interested teenagers enroll in special one- or two- semester courses that combine wilderness activities and community service projects with classroom instruction: Students might be asked to write about their adventures, for instance. Teens say Outward Bound increases their interest in school and produces valuable side effects: self-discipline, self-confidence, and the ability to communicate. New York's program is so successful that Chicago and Los Angeles are starting their own.