Solid Rock Outdoor Ministries Internship

Overview: An internship with Solid Rock Outdoor Ministries is designed to provide individuals seeking to learn about the outdoor adventure industry with hands-on experience in key areas of operation. An important element making this internship experience unique is that your learning is customizable based on areas of interest. You will choose up to 3 Professional Development Tracks focused on giving you behind the scenes experience, and then you will choose up to 2 Adventure Development Tracks to experience the fruits of your labor by participating in a course(s).

While the timeline of a SROM internship is flexible based upon your needs, a typical SROM internship takes place over a half year period beginning in January or February and ending mid-to-late summer. Some interns elect for a full year and start in the beginning of their fall semester. SROM summers (May-August) are where they say “the magic happens”; however, full-time staff are working year round to prepare the mammoth logistics required to run a highly successful outdoor adventure ministry. You, as a SROM intern can join the effort and grow in the process as you seek to enter the outdoor industry.

  • Summer Prep Season (Sep.-May): Interns focused on Professional Development tracks in order to grow in desired skillsets.
  • Summer Operational Season (May-August): Interns participate in SROM courses with opportunities for training and leadership.

Prerequisites: For this internship, SROM is looking for individuals who are:

  • Either earning a degree in a related field of study or are interested in pursuing a career in the outdoor adventure industry.
  • Valid driver’s license and a good driving record
  • Detail oriented; strong organization skills
  • Ability to problem solve
  • Can complete tasks with little or no supervision
  • Attitude of service
  • Good communicator; active listener
  • Self-motivated; shows high initiative
  • Works well independently and as a team

Preferred: Baseline knowledge of backpacking, rock climbing, and mountaineering gear. Familiarity with document and spreadsheet computer software (Ex: Word, Google Docs, Excel, Google Sheets)

Note: Certain professional development tracks may require specific skills and knowledge outside of this list. Please inquire upon seeking application what these requirements may be. Also, applicants are generally not required to have any previous outdoor experience to participate in all Adventure Development Tracks, with the exception of a few (See Adventure Development Track prerequisites below). People with little or no previous outdoor experience have successfully completed our courses and thrived.

About SROM: SROM is a 501(c)3 nonprofit, Christian organization with over 40 years of wilderness ministry experience. Headquartered in Laramie, Wyoming (WY), SROM is governed by a Board of Directors and employs both full-time and seasonal staff. For more information, visit our website at www.srom.org.

Mission and Values: The SROM mission, in the context of technical deep wilderness expeditions, is to birth and grow mature Christ-followers; sons and daughters of light who become loving and loyal disciples who make disciples of all nations. SROM’s core values are the foundation upon which we build our programming and culture. They are the ‘why’ of the mission of SROM. We believe the following four core values are the most prominent teachings of scripture, the ongoing conversation of the Trinity, and the culture of heaven: Glory of God, King and Kingdom, Father and Family, The Nations.

Accreditation: SROM is the only Christian wilderness ministry accredited by the Association for Experiential Education (AEE). Accreditation by the AEE means that SROM meets the highest standards for programming, risk management, instructor training, and operations in the outdoor industry. Other organizations accredited by the AEE include various college and university programs, and the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS).

College Credit: SROM has current and historical partnership agreements with institutions of higher education enabling students to earn undergraduate credit for completing the 40/40 and other courses.

Current partnership agreement institution:

  • Family of Faith Christian University

Historic partnership agreement institutions:

  • Columbia International University
  • John Brown University
  • Montreat College
  • Denver Seminary
  • Colorado Christian University
  • Students have also obtained both graduate and undergraduate credit for the
  • 40/40 by working directly with their own institutions of higher education (e.g. University of Wyoming). Speak with your academic advisor or program/department head to inquire about academic credit through a SROM internship.

Educational Philosophy: SROM has long worked to perfect a model of education called “Experiential Education”, and this, teamed with the Holy Spirit’s inner work, is what has made people walk away from one of our courses with incredible personal transformation time and again. Experiential education can be understood by the saying, “Tell me and I will forget, show
me and I may remember, but involve me and I will understand.” No matter the tracks you
select, this formula will be implemented during your internship because we believe that
in order for you to become a successful individual in the outdoor industry, both spiritual
and emotional maturity are essentials. Your track supervisor(s) will be your experiential education “guides” as you intern with us.

Supervision: Each Professional Development Track has a full-time staff member attached who will be your direct supervisor. You will receive training, project framing, evaluation, and project debriefing from them. Regular meetings with progress reports and check-ins will be a part of your rhythm with them.

Each Adventure Development Track has one or more of our courses attached. Each course will have two or more of SROM’s Field Instructors, who will be your supervisors and resource for training while on a course.

Core Internship Components
-Spiritual Transformation
■ Focus on personal faith development
■ Integration of spiritual lessons and outdoor experiences

-Leadership Development
■ Key leadership competencies gained
■ Hands-on leadership experience

-Authentic Community
■ Engage community and relationships at a new and deeper level
■ Learn about and grow in emotional and relational maturity

-Character Formation
■ Learn to not only serve individual growth and goals, but to serve others as
well
■ Overcome adversity in challenges planned and unplanned

-Skill Acquisition
Build skills in outdoor adventure programming (e.g., climbing, backpacking,
mountaineering)

-Professional Experience
■ Hands-on, practical applications of learning in a professional environment

Internship Tracks: Customize your internship experience based on your unique skills and interests! At SROM, you’ll choose from a variety of Professional Development Tracks and Adventure Development Tracks to create a personalized internship that aligns with your professional and personal goals.

Professional Development Tracks give you in-person professional experience in various areas of adventure program management, and each track includes specific assignments and projects to help you achieve your goals.

Adventure Development Tracks let you participate in SROM courses and trainings that will allow you to see work from your professional tracks come into play firsthand, build on outdoor living skills, and get real-world field experience.

Professional Development Tracks (Pick 2-3 Tracks)


Leadership and Administration: Go beyond day-to-day tasks and contribute to the ‘big-picture’ strategy of a thriving outdoor ministry.

  • Track Description: Partner with SROM’s Executive Director in “big-picture” organizational tasks such as strategic partnership development, SROM staff development, maintaining employee records, organizational support raising efforts, and grant seeking. Attend SROM Board meetings.
    • Reports to/Assists: Executive Director
    • Assignment Examples: Partnership Development List, Organizational Support Raising Plan, Staff Development Initiative, Leadership Succession Materials

Program Management: This is where your professional work comes to life—learn to hire, train, and manage the teams that deliver transformative experiences in the field.

  • Track Description: Collaborate with SROM’s Program Director in contract course communication/development, staff hiring/training, program element creation, community event supervision
    • Reports to/Assists: Program Director
    • Assignment Examples: Takes Course Logistics Manager/Course Support Assistant position during summer operating season, plans and executes annual Food Throw and Restoration Days community events

Marketing/Design: Shape SROM’s story. Apply your creativity and strategic thinking to help us connect with new audiences and share the power of outdoor ministry.

  • Track Description: Work alongside SROM’s Media Manager in market research, media management, and design projects
    • Reports to/Assists: Media Manager
    • Assignment Examples: Market Research Report, Design Project, Marketing Videos, Social Media Posts, College/Fair Visits, Sales Prospecting Tool

IT/Systems Management: Become a critical part of our operations. Help build and maintain the digital systems that support our mission and keep us running smoothly.

  • Track Description: Support SROM’s IT and Systems managers with IT responsibilities: server, hardware/software, research/develop software systems, create tools/resources for SROM staff
    • Reports to/Assists: IT and Systems Managers
    • Assignment Examples: Systems Analysis Report, Website Improvement Project, Automations Project, Security Analysis Report, PCI Compliance Project, Custom App

Admissions/Customer Support: Be the first point of contact for our participants. Develop essential skills in communication and customer relations that are vital to any organization’s success.

  • Track Description: Collaborate with SROM’s Admissions/Customer Support Team in CRM management, participant research/cold calling, participant prep, “Front of House” tasks
    • Reports to/Assists: Admissions/Customer Support Team
    • Assignment Examples: Call Script, FAQ sheet, College/Fair Visits, Student Orientation Script

Program Risk Management: Learn to think like a professional. This track gives you the tools to identify, evaluate, and mitigate risks, ensuring the safety of our participants and staff.

  • Track Description: Support SROM’s Program Director in collecting and evaluating incident reports from the field, creating tabletop crisis scenarios and leading crisis scenario trainings, and attend Risk Management Committee meetings.
    • Reports to/Assists: Program Director
    • Assignment Examples: Tabletop Crisis Scenarios

Permitting/Adventure Itinerary Development: Learn how to navigate the complex world of public land use, playing a key role in acquiring our commercial permits and developing the itineraries that make our adventures possible.

  • Track Description: Partner with SROM’s Permit Manager in preparing permitting reports, investigating itinerary options, and engaging with land management agencies. Learn about the permitting process for an adventure organization and receive Caltopo software training.
    • Reports to/Assists: Permitting Manager
    • Assignment Examples: New Location Itinerary, Permit Applications

Gear/Equipment Management: Master the gear that makes a trip possible. Take on the critical task of managing, maintaining, and sourcing the equipment that gets us into the backcountry.

  • Track Description: Collaborate with the Warehouse and Facilities Manager in collecting annual inventory, completing gear repairs/maintenance, doing research on new gear and gear care methods, and building/maintaining SROM’s online gear inventory system.
    • Reports to/Assists: Warehouse and Facilities Manager
    • Assignment Examples: Gear Inventory, Gear Research Report

Facilities and Transportation: Keep us on the road and in the field. Gain hands-on experience in the essential logistics of vehicle and facility management.

  • Track Description: Assist SROM’s Warehouse and Facilities Manager in building and grounds care/maintenance and vehicle management
    • Reports to/Assists: Warehouse and Facilities Manager
    • Assignment Examples: Building/Ground Improvement Project

Spiritual Curriculum Development: Deepen your own faith and equip others by helping to create and refine the spiritual teachings that are at the core of SROM’s ministry.

  • Track Description: Partner with SROM’s Executive Director and Program Director in developing Christian spiritual teachings, compiling and updating records of SROM spiritual material, and creating resources for SROM field instructors.
    • Reports to/Assists: Executive Director and Program Director
    • Assignment Examples: Short Course and Long Course Teaching, Video Library additions.

Leave No Trace Education: Become an ambassador for the outdoors. This track allows you to develop and promote a culture of environmental stewardship for future generations.

  • Track Description: Work alongside SROM’s Program Director in evaluation of LNT courses and field instructor training, grow and maintain SROM’s partnership with LNT, and develop SROM’s LNT marketing and events.
    • Reports to/Assists: Program Director
    • Assignment Examples: Develop LNT teachings library, Attend LNT conferences, Plan and supervise annual local trail cleanup.

Professional Track assignments are subject to change/addition/or substitution by supervisors.

Adventure Development Tracks (Choose 1-2)

  • Hard Skills: Apply your professional skills in a hands-on, unforgettable way by mastering the technical abilities essential to SROM’s mission.
    • Track Goals: To provide interns with opportunities to develop hard skills in the main activities that SROM programs in: rock climbing, mountaineering, and backpacking.
    • Field Experience Opportunities:
      • Rock Climbing: Rock 1 Instructor Course
        • Prerequisites: None
        • Total Field Experience Time: 7 days
      • Mountaineering: Mountaineering Refresher
        • Prerequisites: None
        • Total Field Experience Time: 2-3 days
      • Backpacking: 10-Day Adult Course, All Men’s Course, All Women’s Course
        • Prerequisites: None
        • Total Field Experience Time: 6-10 days
      • All encompassing: The 40 Days & 40 Nights course
        • Prerequisites: None
        • Total Field Experience Time: 44 days
  • Leadership: Go beyond the office and into the field to hone your leadership and relational abilities in a real-world context.
    • Track Goals: To provide interns with opportunities to develop leadership skills in an outdoor adventure program context.
    • Field Experience Opportunities:
      • Online Transformational Leadership Class
        • Prerequisites: None
        • Total Training Time: 30 hours
    • The Wilderness Ministry Professionals Course (WMPC)
      • Prerequisites: 6 weeks field experience
      • Total Field Experience Time: 20 days
    • UWMBA Program Leadership Course (A program in partnership with the University of Wyoming’s MBA program to provide leadership training.)
      • Prerequisites: None
      • Total Field Experience Time: 7 days
    • The Wilderness Leadership Minor (WLM) (This course consists of: The 40 Days & 40 Nights Course, The Transformational Leadership Cohort, The Wilderness Ministry Professionals Course, and the Rock 1 Instructor Course.)
      • Prerequisites: None
      • Total Field Experience Time: 71 days
  • Ministry-Specific: Deepen your professional work with foundational training that will equip you to lead and serve in a ministry context.
    • Track Goals: To provide interns with training that will enable them as leaders in ministry.
    • Field Experience Opportunities:
      • Online Transformational Leadership Class
        • Prerequisites: None
        • Total Training Time: 30 hours
      • The Wilderness Ministry Professionals Course (WMPC)
        • Prerequisites: 6 weeks field experience
        • Total Field Experience Time: 20 days
  • Lightweight Programming: See your professional planning in action as you develop and experience cutting-edge lightweight adventure programs.
    • Track Goals: To provide interns with experience in the field of lightweight adventure programming.
    • Field Experience Opportunities:
      • Grand Canyon Lightweight Course
        • Prerequisites: None
        • Total Field Experience Time: 5 days
      • Yellowstone Lightweight Course
        • Prerequisites: None
        • Total Field Experience Time: 6 days
      • All Men’s Lightweight Course
        • Prerequisites: None
        • Total Field Experience Time: 6 days
  • Leave No Trace: Become a professional steward of the outdoors by gaining the highest level of certification in Leave No Trace principles.
    • Track Goals: To provide interns desiring Leave No Trace training with the highest certification/training available for the purpose of dispelling Leave No Trace education.
    • Field Experience Opportunities:
      • Zion Nat. Park Leave No Trace Level II Instructor Course
        • Prerequisites: None
        • Total Field Experience Time: 4 days
  • Logistics and Field Support: Step into a critical role. This track gives you hands-on experience in the logistics and on-the-ground support that makes a great course happen.
    • Track Goals: To provide interns with hands-on logistics and/or field instructing experience.
    • Field Experience Opportunities:
      • Summer Hybrid Position with WMPC (Please click here to learn more.)
        • Prerequisites: 6 weeks field experience, WFA/WFR Medical Certification
        • Total Field Experience Time: 20+ days
      • Summer Course Support Assistant Position with All Men’s/All Women’s Course (Please click here to learn more.)
        • Prerequisites: None
        • Total Field Experience Time: 6+ days

Intern Assessment


In Professional Development Tracks, interns will be evaluated with both supervisor and self evaluation rubrics, as well as project reports and submissions.

In Adventure Development Tracks, interns will be evaluated by their Field instructors for each course based on the goal and training objectives for each course.

Adventure Development Track Tuition and Scholarships


Interns are responsible for providing tuition costs for all courses.
See our course offerings page for pricing.

Available financial assistance:
■ Through the generous support of donor created scholarship funds, SROM is able to help others cross the financial gap to be able to come on a life-changing wilderness adventure. See our financial aid page for more information.
■ Many academic institutions offer financial scholarships for field experiences or internships. Please inquire with your academic advisor for these types of financial assistance.

Compensation


○ This is not a paid internship. Summer housing can be provided upon request at no cost to interns pursuing Adventure Development Tracks from the end of May through mid-August.

How to Apply for an Internship


Step 1: Contact SROM! Please reach out to us at one of the listed contact methods in the link.

Step 2: Submit an Internship Application and Resumes. Please submit an application here and upload your professional and outdoor resumes. Upon submission, SROM staff will review your application and resumes
and be in touch to schedule an interview.

Step 3: Interview with a SROM staff member. Meet with someone from SROM staff to interview for your internship.

Step 4: Internship Goal Setting Meeting. Build your internship with a SROM staff member.

Step 5: Begin Internship! The adventure begins!