Lead Field Instructor

About Big City Mountaineers

Big City Mountaineers (BCM) is committed to providing transformative experiences through nature that strengthen life skills and build community for youth from disinvested communities. BCM creates opportunities for 12 to 18 year-old students to connect with nature, themselves, community, and joy by providing free, fully outfitted, and professionally-led backcountry trips.

BCM programs occur on the ancestral territories of many of this nation’s first peoples. Our regional hubs are on the lands of the Ute, Araphaho, and Cheyenne (Denver), the Dakota and Anishinibawaki (Minneapolis), the Ohlone, Ramaytush, Chochenyo, and Muwekma (San Francisco Bay Area), the Duwamish and Muckleshoot (Seattle), and Muscogee and Shawnee (Birmingham).

Headquartered in Denver, CO, BCM is a national organization with a dedicated team of full-time staff, seasonal trip instructors, and volunteers. For more information, you can visit our website, www.bigcitymountaineers.org.

Position Overview

BCM youth are resilient, adaptable, courageous, and resourceful. They come to our trips eager to learn and may be nervous about the experience. BCM’s instructors are responsible for providing youth with the high-quality experiences in nature that BCM is known for. Instructors guide with joy, compassion, empathy, and deep care in facilitating this often new experience. It’s important that Instructors have an interest and passion for understanding and addressing access barriers for communities that have been historically underrepresented in the outdoors. Furthermore, they have a commitment to personal self-reflection, accepting and giving feedback, and leading in a way that centers youth experience.

Instructors are an integral part of the BCM program model. Instructors manage the implementation of the field component of BCM’s programs, while working to create a collaborative and inclusive environment that fosters youth’s connection to nature, self, community, and joy.

Instructors are responsible for leading single-day programs, 1 to 2-night campouts, and 5 to 7-day backcountry expeditions, as well as supporting the logistical needs of each of these trips. The group size varies anywhere from 5 to 15 youth depending on the type of program as well as a team of up to 5 other adults composed of local volunteers, staff from partnering organizations, student leaders, a BCM Instructor and a BCM Lead Instructor.

Instructors are responsible for delivering outcomes-based curriculum, managing risk and safety, and overseeing direct program logistics with support from the Regional Program Manager (RPM). BCM programming takes place in city and state parks as well as remote settings on public land.

While BCM expressly encourages group decision-making, Lead Instructors are the primary decision-makers in the field. With frontcountry support from RPMs, these decisions include but are not limited to:

• Trip itinerary and/or route changes
• Managing group and individual dynamics
• Co-creating and upholding community agreements
• Curriculum delivery
• Adult team coordination
• Risk management, including initial backcountry medical and emergency response

Instructor Responsibilities

Leadership and Facilitation

Over a program series (i.e. a day trip, overnight, and weeklong expedition designed to be with the same cohort of youth), Instructors will be responsible for facilitating and delegating deliverance of BCM curriculum:

• Orienting participants to group roles and empowering youth to step into leadership positions.
• Encouraging all participants to deepen their personal connection with the natural world through intentionally designed activities.
• Recognizing and integrating curriculum connection points during gear organization, meal preparation, campfire discussions, campsite setup, etc.
• Creatively engaging group in the curriculum through on-trail games and activities.

Group Development 

Instructors are responsible for creating the conditions for all participants that build rapport and mutual trust and make for a meaningful experience:

• Working in collaboration with the group to set expectations for engagement and upholding group commitments.
• Facilitating discussions on group and individual goal setting and reflection.
• Creating an open and positive learning environment for all participants.
• Utilizing modeling and encouraging group development skills such as active listening, validating and addressing concerns, expressing vulnerability, etc.
• In addition to supporting youth development, instructors provide thoughtful direction and feedback to the adult team so that they can best support youth participants.

Risk Management

Instructors are critical in providing experiences that mitigate the situational and environmental risks inherent in a backcountry trip:

• Implementing BCM policies and guidelines and guide the group in proactively following them.
• Communicating effectively and appropriately with all members of the group throughout the entirety of time spent together .
• Assessing risks, making informed decisions in the field, and serving as in-field responder to incidents with support from RPM.
• Adhering to BCM’s emergency action plan and response protocols while maintaining clear and direct communication with regional managers and other BCM team members.

Outdoor Technical Skills

BCM delivers programming in diverse course areas across the nation.

• Teaching outdoor technical skills such as; navigation, route selection, cooking/camp stove use, Leave No Trace concepts, etc.
• Demonstrating how to fit gear to personal needs and modeling proper use and care for gear.

Program Preparation and Clean-up

Depending on program type, Instructors’ contracts will include time and tasks that take place before or after the actual program dates. These tasks can include:

• Pre-trip: facilitating an adult team meeting with the adults participating in a program, reviewing student registration forms, finalizing the food and gear preparation.
• Post Trip:  conducting a debrief of the trip, providing thoughtful feedback and identifying growth opportunities; writing and reviewing evaluations, ensuring accurate documentation and timely submission of incident reports; administering surveys to both youth and adult participants to gather feedback on the experience; and assisting with the de-issuance and cleaning of gear.

Qualifications & Compensation:  

Baseline Qualifications

• Experience working with youth from racially, ethnically, and socioeconomically diverse communities, specifically those whose identities and lived experiences are underrepresented in outdoor recreation spaces.
• A minimum of 35 days of documented relevant experience leading groups in a backcountry or outdoor setting.
• Ability to attend a two-day Regional Instructor Orientation (with a $190 stipend included).
• Ability to pass a criminal background check.
• Clean driving record.
• Experience driving 10+ passenger vans and similar vehicles.
• Defensive driving training or similar, or willingness to complete prior to contract start.
• Annual mandatory reporting training in the program operating state, or willingness to complete prior to contract start.
• Ability to facilitate a positive, fun learning environment through appropriate behavior management, communication, and teaching methods.
• Act as a liaison between BCM, schools, families, community organizations, and outside businesses.
• Provide professional and excellent customer service to parents and community partners.
• Current Wilderness First Responder (WFR) with CPR or Wilderness Emergency Medical Technician (WEMT) certification, or ability to obtain one by employment date.
• Flat Water Rescue certification or willingness to obtain prior to contract start (for canoe programs only).
• Ability to carry loads up to 60 pounds.
• Ability to provide personal transportation to and from program sites (mileage reimbursement available when transporting gear or program participants).

Position Competencies

• Passion for working with youth.
• Interest in the outdoors, particularly in science, natural history, and/or recreation.
• Experience working in wilderness programs, outdoor education, summer camps, or related fields.
• Experience working with youth from diverse backgrounds in environmental education and/or adventure education.
• Experience supporting and leading a team of instructors and staff.
• Self-directed and innovative thinker.
• Passionate about building relationships in the community.
• Commitment to BCM’s mission and vision, with the ability to speak passionately about it to individuals and community partners.
• Excellent oral communication skills.
• Demonstrated cultural awareness and responsiveness.
• Experience working respectfully with colleagues and students from a variety of ages, cultures, and economic backgrounds.
• Understanding and application of justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion principles, with an interest in furthering this work personally and within the organization.
• Commitment to expanding access, relevance, and belonging for traditionally underrepresented groups in the outdoors.
• Positive attitude.

Preferred Qualifications

• Spanish-speaking.
• Demonstrated fluency and/or native proficiency in other languages relevant to the youth served.
• Mental Health First Aid training.
• Trauma-Informed Care training.
• Wilderness Water Safety/Lifeguard certifications (for canoe programs only).
• Experience handling documents containing sensitive information, ensuring confidentiality and compliance with relevant data protection policies.
• Experience working with BCM partners and engaging with the communities we serve.
• Experience in partnership development.

Priority will be given to instructors who: 

• Can commit to facilitating multiple programs throughout our program season (April 1 – Labor Day) including day programs, overnights, and weeklong expeditions.
• Live within 100 miles of BCM hub cities.

Compensation

Lead Instructors are hired and paid as 1099 independent contractors.

Daily compensation: $120 – $200/ field day dependent on region, experience, and qualifications , $95/admin day, and $45/pre-trip meeting & meeting prep.

Work Expectations

BCM will hire instructors who commit to 1-4 complete trip series per season with BCM.  Instructors should expect to work with the same cohort for an entire trip series and be present for the day trip, the overnight, and the expedition.  We aim to finalize trip dates with Youth Agency Partners by February or March at the latest, allowing us to confirm Instructors’ seasonal schedules shortly after.

BCM is committed to staffing each trip with two instructors.

BCM Hub Cities – expedition elements

• San Francisco Bay Area, California – backpacking
• Denver, Colorado – backpacking
• Minneapolis, Minnesota – canoeing (Boundary Waters)
• Seattle, Washington – backpacking
• Birmingham, Alabama – backpacking

How to Apply

Click here to apply. Please include any personal or professional experience that you feel will be relevant for the Instructor Position.

Priority will be given to applications received by December 15, 2024, however, applications will be accepted and reviewed on a rolling basis through February 7, 2025.

 

For questions about:

• General inquiries: Stacey Halvorsen
• California positions: David Lee 
• Colorado positions: Sal Prado
• Minnesota positions: Megan Parkinson
• Birmingham positions: Margaret Cartner
• Seattle positions: Sara Morales