Lead INSTRUCTOR

Reports to: Associate Program Director
Location: Redmond, Oregon OR Mazama, WA
Status: Exempt, per diem
Salary: from $125-165 per day, commensurate with experience
Anticipated Start Date: May 1, 2024

This is a seasonal position and exact contract length will be determined once schedules are created after training. Summer season ends 8/23 and our fall season runs until early November.  All staff have the opportunity to work into the fall season.

To Apply

We are committed to reflecting the diverse communities with whom we work and strongly encourage people of color, LGBTQ+ identifying folks, and women to apply. We encourage interested candidates to apply as soon as possible. Review of applications will be on a rolling basis and the positions will remain open until filled with a desired start date of May 1, 2024. 

Please follow the link to apply. Have your Outdoor Skills Log, resume, and three professional references ready to upload or enter. If you have any questions or encounter any issues, please email us at [email protected].

Redmond, OR                                                    Mazama, WA

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Compensation and Benefits

• $125 per diem starting rate (see Advancement Plan for pay structure)
• Full room and board; amenities include communal lodge, prepared lunch and dinner, river access; washer and dryer available
• NWOBS New Staff Training, stipend of $1200.00 paid in 2 installments during the training season which begins May 1st and ends June 4th.
• NWOBS training & professional development opportunities (Technical training opportunities include: backpacking, rock climbing, river, and mountaineering workshops. Instructor facilitation trainings include: Lead Instructor Training, Mental Health First Aid, Student Management Skills, Community Resilience, and EID. Further nationwide staff invitationals available throughout our network)
• Employee Assistance Plan (EAP) -- valued at ~$1,000 per case
• Comprehensive resource & referral center, including financial, legal, well-being coaching, child-, and eldercare
• Free counseling (therapy), 5 sessions per occurrence
• 24/7 Crisis line
• Industry Pro-Deals, discounts from partner brands and other top outdoor gear providers.
  
• 50% course tuition discounts for staff and their family members.
• Opportunity to apply for discounted technical training, such as Swiftwater rescue, Single Pitch Instructor, and Wilderness First Responder certifications.

Position Summary

Lead Instructors report to Course Directors when in the field and are responsible for safety and program delivery. Lead Instructors collaborate with and coach Instructors in facilitating the mission of Outward Bound, and are responsible for effective course delivery. Lead Instructors bear the responsibility of course quality and safety, and are the final decision makers on course when working with Instructors.

The Lead Instructor and Instructor are expected to intentionally design inclusive and culturally relevant courses, build rapport with students, facilitate difficult conversations, and empower students in interpersonal and outdoor skills. All instructors, including Lead Instructors, must work effectively with logistics team members, during course prep and all course functions. Lead Instructors must possess a deep understanding of serving students on wilderness expeditions and the capacity to collaborate and work productively with their co-workers through coaching and role modeling. 

Instructor Roles & Responsibilities

Northwest Outward Bound School is currently hiring Lead Instructors. We are seeking applicants that have worked a minimum of 75 course days as a Lead Instructor at other outdoor/experiential education organizations delivering expeditionary programming. After being hired and attending required training in May 2024, you will work at least one 15-day course with a more experienced staff before instructing as a Lead. A successful candidate must be proficient in backcountry camp craft and highly experienced in at least two of the following outdoor skills: backpacking, mountaineering, rock climbing, sea kayaking, whitewater rafting, and flat water canoeing.  Every instructor brings their authentic and unique self to their role. The work is challenging yet rewarding and demands humility, creativity, flexibility, good humor, determination, and above all: compassion.

Safety: Appropriately manage physical and emotional safety on course. Manage student groups in hazardous terrain (i.e. rough water or uneven terrain). Develop safety plans and manage emergencies utilizing judgment, experience, and OB procedures and policies.

Outdoor Knowledge and Skill: Skillfully manage students and risk in two or more course activities including: backpacking, rock climbing, mountaineering, white water rafting, sea kayaking, and canoeing. Please view the Minimum Skills Standards for this position. Download our Outdoor Skills Log template, fill it out in detail, and be prepared to upload during the application process.

Course Delivery: Participate in course planning, including development of experiential, educational, and outdoor skill curricula, route planning, food and equipment organization, and packing. Effectively assess student needs and facilitate lessons, activities, and discussions to meet student needs and achieve stated course outcomes.

Interpersonal Knowledge and Skill: Work effectively with students 12-18+ years in age who have never camped before. Ability to equitably support students from diverse backgrounds and is committed to inclusion. . Work with staff that have different styles and backgrounds. Take initiative and carry out necessary tasks individually and work cooperatively as a team. 

Uphold NWOBS values and expectations on course and at base: We commit to personal growth in areas of equity, and inclusion; to act with integrity, role modeling excellence and craftsmanship while demonstrating compassion and respect for the diverse lived experiences of peers, students, and families.

Redmond, OR                                                    Mazama, WA

Apply Here                                                                Apply Here

Required Skills and Competencies

• Must be 21 years of age or older on May 1st, 2024. 
• Must possess current Wilderness First Responder (WFR) and CPR Certifications or must demonstrate intent to obtain prior to the start of training.
• Possess the mental stamina, adaptability, and emotional maturity to work and thrive in austere/remote/challenging course environments while living and traveling with students and co-instructors 24/7.
• 2-3 years of extensive and comparable experience in risk management, experiential learning, and/or outdoor education.
• Ability to work collaboratively with diverse groups of people, to create an environment of inclusion and cooperation on course and at Base camp.
• Ability to take ownership and practice humility in your personal journey toward building a more inclusive and increasingly safer workspace.
• Ability to plan and facilitate activities, lessons, and discussions, including presenting culturally relevant and engaging lessons that meet learners' needs and reflect their experience beyond their course.
• Must have sufficient physical fitness to participate in all duties as assigned and maintain ample energy and focus to aid students and staff. 

About NW Outward Bound School

With over 50 years of innovation in experiential and outdoor education in the Pacific Northwest, Northwest Outward Bound School (NWOBS) continues to change lives through challenge and discovery. 

Our transformative and educational wilderness courses are set in some of the most dramatic and stunning parts of the United States. NWOBS facilitates wilderness-based programs in Oregon, Washington, and Idaho, and also serves urban youth and schools in the Portland metropolitan area. As an Outward Bound School, we are committed to the core values of compassion, integrity, excellence, equity, and inclusion, and strive to achieve the following outcomes: building character, developing leadership skills, and creating an ethic of social and environmental responsibility. 

NWOBS recognizes that there are barriers precluding people with marginalized identities (e.g., black, indigenous, and people of color, immigrants, refugees, women, genderqueer, trans, people from low income communities, rural communities, people with disabilities, and more) from being able to access transformative and inclusive educational experiences. These barriers also prevent people from accessing and having inclusive and culturally relevant experiences in the outdoors. NWOBS believes it has the responsibility, as an educational institution, to dismantle these barriers so that it can fulfill its mission of changing the lives of all who desire a quality outdoor education experience, and not just the lives of those with the privilege of being able to access NWOBS today. 

As such, NWOBS aspires to be more reflective of and relevant to the communities in the Pacific Northwest, both within its staff and leadership body as well as its student body.

NWOBS is an equal opportunity employer. It is the policy of NWOBS to provide equal employment opportunity in accordance with applicable law to all qualified individuals without regard to race, color, creed, religion, age, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, marital status, military status, political opinion, national origin, familial status, mental or physical disability, source of income, or any other status protected by federal, state, or local law, in all personnel actions.

Redmond, OR                                                    Mazama, WA

Apply Here                                                                Apply Here