Southwest - Job Postings
Lone Star Expeditions
Wilderness Field Instructor
Located in the Davy Crockett National forest near Groveton, Texas, we utilize a primitive skill teaching modality, group dynamics facilitation, experiential and academic curriculums, and in-depth Master’s-level counseling to effect change within our students. We provide an intervention and treatment assessment program for at-risk teens from across the U.S. Most students coming to LSE display self-defeating behaviors and destructive decision-making patterns, which manifest as substance abuse problems, difficulty in school, deteriorating personal relationships, a lack of personal care, angry and oppositional behavior, and a general loss of control in their lives. LSE aims to unearth the gifts and talents that have been buried beneath these unhealthy patterns of behavior. We then aim to provide our students with tools to respond to challenges in a productive, solution-oriented manner by challenging their “old habits” and cultivating a desire for change within each student. LSE is an empowerment program and our students will walk away at the beginning of a long road of growth, being more self-reliant, able to sustain meaningful relationships, and possessing a stronger personal integrity.
We serve a maximum of 8 students per group. A treatment team consisting of 2 or 3 Field Instructors (1 Head and 1 or 2 Assistants) and a Therapist facilitate the course. Instructors are with the students around the clock. Work shifts run 8 days on and 6 days off. The licensed therapist engages the students in deeper-level counseling and works with their parents. Under the direction of the therapist, instructors carry out specific, therapeutic outcomes for all students and devise strategies for reaching the intended outcomes in the field. Students progress through the program as evidenced by their investment, responsibility, and integration of the therapeutic work.
Mission Statement:
United by a sense of caring, we at Lone Star Expeditions provide a safe, intensive, nature-based therapeutic intervention. Set in the forests of deep East Texas, we orient families and guide teenagers toward healthy relationships and personal enrichment.
Pre-requisites:
• 21 Years of Age
• Have current Adult CPR and Basic First-Aid Certifications (must be current prior to New-Hire Orientation). Wilderness First Aid or Wilderness First Responder is preferred.
• Experience in 1 or more of the following areas is a plus: 1) Experience with at-risk youth in a work setting; 2) Experience in a counseling/teaching capacity with children; 3) Personal competency with wilderness skills and/or a background in facilitating experiential education.
• A strength and commitment towards pro-active, interpersonal communication amidst constant challenge.
The Field Instructor position in a nutshell (Just a taste! Roles vary dependent on instructor level):
• First and foremost - have a high investment towards effecting a positive change within student lives and a congruency with our mission.
• Participate in a 1 week hiring seminar and an orientation seminar. (Orientation imparts fundamental skills workshops, Crisis Intervention, Documentation Training, First aid and CPR, etc.)
• Lead 8 -day courses of up to eight at-risk teens into the pine forest of East Texas, accounting for 24-hr safety and supervision. Each week, 2 days are spent at a layover site conducting life skills and therapeutic activities with a therapist.
• Participate in 1/2 day, pre-course trainings, mid-course evaluation, and a post-course debriefing. Trainings involve therapeutic strategies, hard-skills training, field safety, field logistics, etc.
• Inspire and create self-reliance and personal care standards, insuring student safety and success.
• Employ our primitive skills modality: primitive fire making, simple navigation (maps, compass GPS) camping, simple shelter and pack construction, etc.
• Work with treatment team to identify student’s patterns of behavior and their underlying, positive intentions.
• Track and guide emotional growth curve of students through facilitation of an emotional growth workbook.
• Collaborate with therapist in order to devise practical strategies to re-frame student’s unhealthy beliefs with positive, healthy beliefs.
• Facilitate practice of treatment goals via primitive skills instruction, simulated families, search and rescue techniques, map and compass navigation, team-building initiatives, ropes course, personal reflection activities, journal writing, etc.
• Empower students to take responsibility for their actions and consequences, make healthy choices, build and maintain strong relationships, and demonstrate community service towards others.
• Instruct and review student curriculum manual for academic credit.
All instructors are evaluated rigorously by their Head Instructors, Therapist, and Field Director. Instructors advance through a 3-tier role-system by completing “Instructor Growth Books,” a performance assessment plan that relates directly to upward mobility and pay increases.
Employment benefits include medical, dental, vision insurance, and a 401K plan. We offer pre- and post-course temporary housing.
I genuinely hope that we may explore avenues of employment together and look forward to considering you for our team.
Please fax or email resume or questions to the address below.
Sincerely,
Becky Stockham
bstockham@aspeneducationgroup.com
828.242.2431 cell
828.684.8667 office
828.684.9098 fax