if you are interested in a leadership position please check out the folllowing
SHP trips have up to three
leaders (usually two) - a senior leader and one or two assistant leaders. The
average age of our senior leaders is about 25 (minimum age is 21). Senior
leaders are typically teachers, graduate students, and college seniors.
Assistant leaders are usually college sophomores and juniors. Many are
former SHP trip participants.
senior leaders
Each senior leadership applicant goes through a
lengthy application process and a personal interview with a director. Phone interviews are not acceptable. Leaders selected after this
screening must complete one of our 5-day training courses in Massachusetts before being assigned a trip. We do not assign a first
year leader to trips based solely on his or her application form. The leader's
personality is the most critical element in making a trip work. Trippers should
find the leader fun to be with, yet respond well when he or she enforces safety
rules or discipline. Therefore, at SHP we wait until after we have been with the
first year leaders for 5 days during the training course before we assign them
to trips. After being with them for 5 days, we find that we can make much better
judgements about which age groups and types of trips would best suit each
leader. In addition, leaders receive further training for their particular trip
during a 4-day preparation and orientation period just before their trip
departure date. Leaders also return to SHP for 3 days after their trips end for trip evaluation and organizational work.
Our leaders are not meant to be tour guides, but each leader has extensive SHP notes and guides, based on 35 years of experience, about the area in which the group is traveling. All leaders must hold a valid Red Cross First Aid Certificate and many have water safety and
advanced first aid training as well.
assistant leaders
Many SHP assistant leaders are drawn from within the
program as former trippers. All assistant leaders must also have first aid
training. The assistant leader positions (as well as the resident summer
jobs at SHP headquarters) present an excellent opportunity for former SHP
trippers to develop leadership skills and job responsibility. In fact, a
tripper who receives a recommendation from his/her leader can look forward to
many years of involvement with SHP, culminating in senior leadership.
The SHP trip structure provides a unique opportunity
for teenagers to share the marvelous benefits of an intense group experience
based upon responsibility, cooperation, and sharing. The main element in
realizing the potential of a trip is outstanding leadership, and we therefore
choose leaders who are the types of people who have the strength, maturity,
sense of responsibility, and experiences to be the guiding figures for their
groups. They provide strong direction, firm structure (based on SHP policies)
and a sensitive personality around which a cohesive group can form. Our leaders
are firm in matters of safety, respect for others, and the SHP rule structure
but they also have the warmth, the humor, and the enthusiasm to provide a
rewarding group experience.
SHP maintains close contact with leaders during
their trip. Leaders are scheduled to telephone the directors at regular
intervals during the trip (even from Europe). In addition, leaders are required
to call SHP headquarters whenever there is illness, possible itinerary
change, etc.
Several SHP staff personnel are emergency leaders who
are available on a 24 hour basis to assist groups with emergencies or problems
that might arise on the road. The directors are also available on a 24 hour
basis.
The minimum leadership time commitment is four
weeks. The salary structure for senior leaders ranges from $1040 to $2640 depending upon the length of the work period. The salary range for assistant leaders ranges from $780 to $1980.
