For students seeking experience in outdoor leadership, the Department of Student Life’s Outdoor Programs offers an unique opportunity;  Leadership Experiences in Adventure Programming (LEAP), a free, 90 hour, hands-on outdoor leadership course that leverages the natural environment of the Northeast as the ideal classroom to develop and practice skills.

LEAP is currently offered in three separate sessions throughout the year. The fall and the spring sessions focus on general backcountry living skills through backpacking and canoe trips, while the winter session concentrates on winter camping and climbing.

Regardless of the season, LEAP offers the same core curriculum and skillset -- students who complete LEAP will leave the program demonstrating mastery of the various technical, leadership, communication, teamwork, and critical thinking skills necessary to safely and successfully lead fellow students on outdoor adventures – including creating and maintaining positive community norms and culture, building trust with participants, conflict mediation, and mental health training. LEAP’s curriculum is built on a foundation of the National Association of Colleges & Employers (NACE) competencies utilized by UVM’s Career Center.

After 90 hours of in-class and field experience on LEAP, each participant concludes the course with a one-on-one reflection meeting with Outdoor Programs staff – an effort to benchmark individual growth and achievements, both within the context of outdoor programming and leadership, and more generally.

“This work doesn’t happen in a vacuum,” says Izzy Lazarus, Coordinator for Outdoor Programs here at the University of Vermont. “Yes, we’re going backpacking – but what we’re actually doing is learning… it’s a vehicle we use to teach leadership skills, life skills, working skills.”

Part of the reflection process, she adds, is providing students with the perspective and language necessary to describe their professional growth for future opportunities and understand how their learning is applicable to their experience here at UVM and beyond.

LEAP not only leaves students equipped with a variety of crucial technical, professional and social skills; it also serves as a pathway to various paid opportunities through the Department of Student Life. In addition to internship opportunities within the LEAP program itself (and various other trips throughout each semester), LEAP is now part of the preliminary training to become a UVM TREK leader – an upperclassman who guides a five-day pre-orientation trip with a group of incoming students.

Now, over a year after the first iteration of LEAP, student employment has become a cornerstone of the program itself. Previous participants can return, drawing on their LEAP experiences and other technical training offered through the Department of Student Life to become qualified co-instructors for the next session of LEAPers.

Creating these paid positions are an important part of UVM’s commitment to increasing access and opportunities in the outdoors – acknowledging that for many students, spending unpaid time mastering these professional skills may not be a viable option.

“The training is all free, and we help students get their Wilderness First Aid (WFA) Certification; so, if somebody was to participate in LEAP, and two semesters of LEAP internship,” Lazarus says, “they’re coming out of college with the requisite experience to enter the workforce at the professional level in outdoor education.”

These paid positions, in turn, lead to more opportunities for the student body to participate in outdoor programming here at UVM – as the success of LEAP bolsters the number of trained and capable student outdoor leaders on campus, Outdoor Programs has increasing availability to partner with other departments on campus to create accessible outdoor engagement opportunities for the entirety of the student body.

For students who may not currently desire LEAP’s 90-hour commitment, UVM’s numerous outdoor-oriented student clubs and organizations offer plentiful opportunities to engage and learn outdoors without a financial barrier. Non-technical equipment, from skis and tents to appropriate winter clothing are available for students to reserve through the UVM Basecamp.

Ready to take a LEAP? The next participant information session will be held January 24, 2024 from 8-9pm in the Benedict Auditorium.