Internship Opportunities

Trekkers Internships

Trekkers has 3, six-week internships opportunities for college-aged individuals looking to expand their professional horizons:

• Advanced Trekkers Trip Leader/Facilitator
• Teen Trekkers Trip Leader/Facilitator
• Marketing/Administrative Intern

Scroll down for the full internship descriptions.

Advanced Trekkers Trip Leader/Facilitator

Dates: Mid-June to Mid-July (6 weeks)

Description of Position:

College interns will work with Executive Director and students to facilitate, design, and implement this 14-day expedition for incoming high school freshman. Interns will have the opportunity to assist leading the trips they help design.

Description of Program:

Advanced Trekkers offers 8th graders to go on a 14-day expedition in early summer. Students participate in pre-trip planning meetings throughout the school year with Trekker adult volunteers to plan and implement the expedition. During the meetings, students are involved in team-building exercises, problem-solving initiatives, and consensus decision-making. Students design the expedition around five-educational components: Service Learning, Cultural Awareness, Environmental Awareness, Adventure-based Education, and a Wilderness/Hiking Component.

The mission of the Advanced Trekkers program is to introduce students to the diversity of cultures, people, traditions and natural resources that exist outside the focus of their everyday lives.

Responsibilities include:

• Attend and assist in the final two-planning/teambuilding meetings in June that includes teambuilding, consensus decision-making, and other trip preparations.
• Assist the director in checking the gear of the participating students at a meeting a couple days prior to the trip.
• Serve as a leader on the expedition, which takes place for 14 days during the end of June through early July.
• Become familiar with the Trekkers model, which is a community-based mentoring program matching caring adults with students from 7^th to 12th grade using experiential education travel, service learning, and cultural and historical exploration.
• Assist the Director in various tasks related to the trip and the overall program, including but not limited to mailings, organizing and cleaning gear, phone calls, and bus preparation, and clean-up.
• Documenting and evaluating the expedition upon our return.

Qualifications:

• Background in expeditionary learning, environmental education or related field
• Passion for working with young people
• Experience in group facilitation, including team building and problem solving initiatives
• Possess strong leadership skills
• Comfort with using basic Microsoft Word, Excel spreadsheets, and the Internet.

Benefits:

• Free travel (all expenses included) on expedition
• Stipend at the end of your internship
• Subsidized housing during your internship (Trekkers assist you in finding housing)
• Training opportunities
•  Opportunity to gain experience in facilitating expeditionary learning and understanding grass roots, community-based mentoring.

Teen Trekkers Trip Leader/Facilitator

Dates: Mid-April through Mid-May (5-6 weeks)

Description of Position:

College interns will work with Executive Director and students to facilitate, design, and implement this 3-day expedition for 7^th grade Trekkers students. Interns will have the opportunity to assist leading the trips they help design.

Description of Program:

Teen Trekkers offers twenty-four 7th graders and 25-30 caring adults from the community the opportunity to explore Acadia National Park in May. Students and adults who participate take part in a pre-trip, 3-week orientation program where they are involved in team-building initiatives, small group discussions, and an extensive canoe orientation. Students are separated onto three teams of 8 that include 8-10 adults and a facilitator. On the trip each team goes hiking and canoeing and is given a chance to share their experience in small group discussions throughout the weekend. The goal of the Teen Trekkers program is to provide a shared wilderness experience for students and community adults as a way to lay the foundation for on-going relationships to occur throughout the rest of their junior and senior high school years.

Responsibilities include:

• Attend and assist in the following pre-trip meetings: Orientation for students and parents, Orientation for Students/Leaders, Canoe Instruction for Participants, and Gear Check Session.
• Assist the director in checking the gear of the participating students at a meeting a couple days prior to the trip to make sure they have all the items on the gear list.
• Serve as a leader during the 3-day expedition that takes place in mid-May that includes assisting in meal preparation, assisting with small group discussions, serving as technical staff for canoeing and rock climbing, and being a role-model for the participants.
• Attending the Volunteer Training Meeting that addresses roles and responsibilities of trip leader
• Assist the Director in various tasks related to the trip and the overall program, including but not limited to mailings, organizing and cleaning gear, phone calls, bus preparation and clean-up, recruiting, training, and clear? mentors.
• Documenting and evaluating the expedition upon our return.

Qualifications:

• Background in expeditionary learning, environmental education or related field
• Passion for working with young people
• Experience in group facilitation, including team building and problem solving initiatives
• Demonstrates strong leadership skills
• Comfort with using basic Microsoft Word, Excel spreadsheets, and the Internet.

Marketing/Administrative Intern

Dates: Late Summer (September) – Early Fall (November) - The dates are flexible.

Description of Position: College interns will work with the Executive Director to increase local, regional, and state awareness of Trekkers, as well as help facilitate the day-to-day operations of the organization.

Description of the Program:

Trekkers is a non-profit, outdoor-based mentoring program that connects caring adults with young people through expeditionary learning, community service and adventure-based education.

With community adult volunteers working throughout the year, Trekkers provides a myriad of educational, experiential, and cross-cultural opportunities for local young people, with an emphasis on relationship building and an appreciation of the earth as "educator". We follow students from grade to grade as they “graduate” from one Trekkers program into the next along a six-year journey in becoming responsible and aware young adults.

Trekkers has developed “Six Hallmarks” to help develop programs that best meet the needs of youth in our community. Our programs seek to:

1. Create meaningful connections between students and caring adults
2. Collaborate with the larger community acting on behalf of it’s youth.
3. Offer safe places for young people to be heard, trusted, respected and loved.
4. Allow the earth to be the educator through outdoor experience.
5. Expose students to the diversity of cultures that lie outside the focus of their everyday lives.
6. Teach the discipline of self-determination and active responsibility and other life skills.

Responsibilities include:

• Assist in redesigning and updating the Trekkers website (http://www.trekkersonline.com/).
• Assist in the development of marketing materials including, but not limited to mentoring applications, fundraisers, Trekkers programs/expeditions, and the annual appeal.
• Increase Trekkers’ financial and volunteer support base through the use of new media avenues not yet utilized by Trekkers.
• Assist in creating, editing and implementing bulk mailing, brochures, flyers, etc.

Qualifications:

• Comfort in working with Microsoft Word, Excel, and Publisher.
• Excellent written and verbal skills
• Creative; able to think outside the box
• Self-disciplined and motivated
• Background in marketing and administrative work.
• Ability to work within a limited budget in a non-profit setting

Benefits:

• Stipend at the end of your internship
• Subsidized housing during your internship (Trekkers will assist you in finding housing)
• Professional Training opportunities
• Opportunity to gain a comprehensive understanding in how a grassroots, community-based non-profit mentoring organization is run.

How to Apply

Submit your resume, cover letter and two references, along with the application. Please send the above information to:

Trip Leader/Facilitator Application

Marketing/Administrative Application

Don Carpenter (AEI ‘98)
Executive Director
Trekkers
P.O. Box 455
Tenants Harbor, ME 04860
(207) 594-5095
E-mail: don@midcoast.com

http://www.trekkersonline.com/