About Us

Our guides are hand-selected for their skills and interest in sharing the natural world with young people.

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When not guiding Grand Canyon Youth trips, they work as teachers, students, artists, conservationists, and healthcare providers, among other things. Given their sense of humor and ability to facilitate, we are proud to have such talented and conscientious guides leading our trips. Here are some of our dedicated river guides:

Governing Board

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Kate Morley, Chair

Angela Keith, Vice Chair

Bonnie Baker, Vice Chair

Eric Scott, Treasurer

Dania Wilson, Secretary

Ian Austin

Zach Fountain

Ronald Hubert

Linda Jalbert

Eleanor McDonough

Scott Pettitt

Helen Ranney

Ashlynn Roberson

Jon Streit

Marieke Taney

 

 

JEDI (Justice, Equity, Diversity, Inclusion) Council

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Volunteers are essential to the work we do

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We have a lot of opportunities in our office/warehouse for volunteers to come in and help behind the scenes with getting trips out on the water. Volunteers help keep the warehouse working by checking tents, packing sleep kits, and tidying our gear borrowing room. Our volunteers also help out at local community events in Flagstaff and our Annual FUNdraiser, Rivers & Reels Silent Auction and Film Fest.

If you are interested in volunteering, please contact our volunteer manager.

Expedition Director

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Grand Canyon Youth is seeking an Expedition Director.

The Expedition Director leads our Expeditions team in ensuring exceptional service to our collaborators, youth, and parents/guardians. An ideal candidate has extensive experience managing outdoor experiences for youth, has a keen eye for details, and exceptional communication skills.  Please see the Expedition Director Job Description for more information.

To apply, submit a resume and cover letter attention “Hiring Committee” to [email protected] addressing any pertinent professional and personal experience. Questions regarding this position can be sent to the same email. 

Applications Due: May 27th, 2022

Anticipated Start Date: August 15th, 2022

GCY is a small organization where most staff have multiple responsibilities and roles. Our ideal candidate will be dependable, trustworthy, and able to follow up with and complete tasks in a timely manner. Applicants must be very organized and whole-heartedly embrace our values and mission.

We are always looking to grow our amazing Field Staff pool!

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Field Staff at Grand Canyon Youth consists of river guides, hiking guides, expedition leaders, and drivers. Our main program season is March-July, but we run programs almost year-round. We do our hiring in the December – February window, but it is never too early or late to send your information in. While we aim to have all spots filled before our first trip of the season there are regular adjustments made to the schedule to meet programmatic needs throughout the season.

• We do the majority of our river programs on the San Juan River and the Colorado River on the Diamond Down and Lees Ferry sections. We do two Grand Canyon trips each year. Our expedition leader positions are mostly in Canyon de Chelly and paired with a San Juan River program.
• Grand Canyon Youth guides and expedition leaders are outdoor educators. Our primary focus is creating community and opportunities for youth to challenge themselves while exploring the rivers and canyons of the Southwest. We have fun and play in the dirt while also teaching about the places we are travelling through. Additionally, because we are a youth organization we run completely dry trips.
• Responsibilities include but are not limited to: educating participants about the place you are traveling as well as outdoor safety and etiquette; leading hikes; engaging with youth and participating in interpretation; providing needed first-aid and managing/assessing risk; setting-up camp, cooking meals, cleaning dishes, maintaining toilet systems; providing care and repair to boats and equipment; using good judgment and maintaining heart and humor.
• Minimum Requirements: Be 18 years of age or older; Wilderness First Responder, CPR, and Epi Certifications; Food Handler’s Certificate; experience on the sections we boat through; pass a pre-employment background and driving record check and drug test.

• We do a limited number of hiking trips during the season, but we always do two Grand Canyon exchange hikes on Bright Angel Trail.
• Hiking guides are expected to: fulfill lead and sweep hiker responsibilities that include educating participants about hiking safety & etiquette; provide needed first-aid and managing/assessing risks; encourage participants in order for all to have an enjoyable and safe hike.
• Minimum Requirements: be 21 years of age or older; Wilderness First Responder, CPR, and Epi Certifications; experience hiking on Bright Angel Trail; have a working mobile phone, valid driver’s license, and 5 years driving experience; pass a pre-employment background and driving record check and drug test.

• We do most of the transportation for our expeditions. This means driving a van with 10-19 year olds for 2-6 hours across the highways of Arizona and Utah.
• Driver responsibilities include: transporting participants to and from their Grand Canyon Youth expedition; and attending to all pre and post drive tasks which include pre-drive safety checks and loading of vehicles, post drive clean-up and fueling vehicles, and gear return and cleaning as need.
• Minimum Requirements: be 21 years of age or older; have a working mobile phone, valid driver’s license, and 5 years driving experience; pass a pre-employment background and driving record check and drug test.

Please contact us if you are interested and we will send you the official job description(s).

Annual Report

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