Providing free nature outings and adventures to youth who would other wise not have such opportunities, Boulder Valley ICO is entirely volunteer run.

See our new website for more information on our program.

Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Volunteer Resources

100% Volunteer-powered!

How do I find out more about BVICO and apply to volunteer?

A: Send and email to boulderico@gmail.com

What is the time commitment?
A: Although everyone's situation is different, we generally ask for volunteers to serve at least 5 volunteer-days per year. A long trip like the Canyonlands backpacking trip would count for virtually all of this quota, or you could participate in several short and local trips such as our monthly Water Sentinels program. Additionally, there are a lot of behind the scenes non-trip roles that you could take on, such as fundraising, managing our webpages, or keeping our gear depot neat and clean.

What are the requirements to be a volunteer?
A: We have a general level of volunteering, which doesn't have too many requirements besides a background and reference check, and agreeing to our code of ethics (see our code of ethics - PDF). The second level of volunteer is called a certified leader, which requires the background check plus first aid and CPR training (wilderness first aid is preferred; ICO will even reimburse the course fees for people who become ICO certified leaders), membership in the Sierra Club (for insurance reasons), an outdoor leadership class/ training course (we hope to make this a 2-day/one night annual event), and child abuse recognition training. In addition, you will be expected to co-organize a couple of trips before becoming certified, and you will be evaluated by your peers and subject to approval of the steering committee. Being a certified leader enables you to lead trips and all of our trips are required to have at least one ICO certified leader present. We encourage every volunteer to become certified as it enables us to offer more outings and operate at a high, professional-quality level.

Once again, we encourage certification - you will be able to participate in more trips and we will have more flexibility in scheduling the trips.

Who is a typical volunteer?
Generally, our volunteers have a lot of outdoor experience and they enjoy working with kids. We look for enthusiastic, positive individuals. Our volunteers span a wide age range, from 20-something to more-than-50-something. We have teachers, scientists, writers, students, lawyers, accountants, elk hunters, Colorado natives, Italian immigrants, and retirees among our ranks.

How do I run an outing for Boulder Valley Inner City Outings?

Current and Prospective volunteers with ICO will be interested in our Outings Checklist, which is located here:

Boulder Valley ICO Outings Checklist

This has links to all of the information and forms that you need for planning a trip. Login with your google docs account is required to view some of the items (questions? boulderico@gmail.com).

Volunteering with ICO is hugely rewarding and lots of fun. If you're ready to tale the plunge, download the application packet linked below.
Application Packet (download this PDF; it is a type-able form when you open it in Acrobat)