W2W Education scholarship recipients

I have been stagnant with taking more AMGA courses because I must manage taking time off work (this is a 10-day course), training for the course and my finances. This has been a difficult balance.

Having this continued education will continue to make me an asset as a female guide and to continue to inspire other females to pursue guiding. As of July, 2022 the AMGA will abide by terrain guideline and this course will enable to me to continue to guide for Keely's Camps for Girls.

Keely’s Camps for Girls is a program that is dedicated to providing female mentors and coaches for young athletes and sharing wisdom, positive fun energy, knowledge and experience with the next generation of girls in skiing and outdoor sports.

My parents immigrated from the southern farmlands of China, so they had never seen mountains covered with snow. The idea of having two pieces of wood coming down “controlled” was simply unheard of to them. I also realized that there were not a lot of female East Asians on the slopes that had a background like mine and slowly felt like I did not fit in.

Being part of the non-profit organization (YES : Youth Enrichment Services) that provided affordable sport-based youth development and leadership programming opportunities was truly transformative. In my middle and high school years, I volunteered to teach youth who were like me. As I plan to continue volunteering at YES, I want to go through intense training and examination to provide better Snowsports education. There are only a few centers, non-profits, and organizations out there who are making a more diverse, equitable and inclusive Snowsports industry. I want to be part of this change and continue to make an impact in communities by helping these groups with such a mission!

YES is an organization dedicated to serving Boston youth with a targeted focus on reaching low-to-moderate income children and teens and inspiring youth through outdoor experiences and leadership opportunities that build confidence and prepare them to summit life’s challenges.:

Looking for my place in the outdoors wasn’t easy - I would have to climb over mountains of systemic racism, build wealth, and overcome cultural norms to gain the opportunity to take up space in snow sports. As a Black woman on the ski hill, I was isolated. I did not see myself reflected, and my presence was noticed and scrutinized (othered) – which continues to this day. I noticed the lack of racial and ethnic diversity at the guest level and even more apparent in the low rates of BIPOC as certified PSIA-AASI instructors, divisional staff leaders, and examiners. As a PSIA L1 Instructor I have taken note of how fast my white colleagues and peers advance within their PSIA/AASI certifications – this can only be attributed to their early entry in snow sports and privilege of access to outdoors spaces. During clinics on a powder day, I am unable to navigate these conditions and my skiing deficiency is evident.

Despite hurdles, I am determined to become more than just a PSIA L1 instructor. To achieve my L2 and L3 I need to be able to ski in all conditions and this instruction will help me fast-track my development to achieve my goals, become a better instructor, and give back to Black, Indigenous, Women of Color within my non-profit EDGE Outdoors.

Annette is the founder of EDGE Outdoors, a powerful snow sports initiative designed to address an overlooked segment of minorities: Black, Indigenous, and Women of Color (BIWOC), including Trans-Women of Color (TWOC).

For me, the first obstacle was the lack of female role models. If I think back about the mentors I have had in my skiing career so far, few of them are women up to recently. As a result, I developed some challenges with my confidence and my sense of belonging. Many women are pushed out of this industry, whether it's due to the industry being male dominant, wanting to starting a family, the lack of sustainability in the work that is available, or the lack of role models.

If I can be committed to this process, I hope it will empower other women to do the same, in their own way. I want to build a career that can sustain the active, outdoor-oriented, and family-friendly lifestyle I want to lead. The Level 4 certification will allow me to become a Course Conductor, to pursue teaching opportunities around the globe, and to provide training within the snow school - ultimately making this a sustainable career choice.

It was my plan to continue with the DSV-A trainer directly after the basic level and instructor training in alpine skiing. Unfortunately, due to the pandemic, the training courses were all cancelled in the last 2 years. Since the circumstances are slowly improving again, now would be the perfect time to tackle the A-trainer training. And as a student, of course, any support is more than welcome and highly appreciated :)

For me it is important to learn from the best, to improve my own skills and specially to learn new things. I want to use the training to pass on my knowledge to others, to convey the joy and fun of skiing and to get the best out of everyone, whether in the skiing club, during ski courses or on "private" ski days.

As an Indigenous woman, I believe in the importance of equal representation within any profession. To me, guiding is so much more than physical strength and ski ability. It requires responsibility, decision-making, safety, and empathy; all of which transcend gender or cultural identity.

I want to become a leader in my industry and my community, to create an inclusive environment for all who respect the land. I am often one of few women, usually the only Indigenous person, and I don’t want to be one of the boys. I want to be like the strong, independent women and non-binary people in my life who inspire me through their fearlessness and determination.

I lost a close friend to an avalanche which made me afraid of backcountry skiing, so fear stood in my way. As an EMT and volunteer on the search and rescue team in Silverton CO, I’m inspired to explore the San Juan’s, but I feel the complexity of this terrain exceeds my knowledge. I want to be able to safely explore the backcountry and participate on my search and rescues winter response team.

After utilizing the information gained, practicing the skills I learn and becoming more comfortable navigating the terrain and mitigating the risks, I would ultimately love to be a mountain guide. I want to be able to share this newly found passion with others and take them to see all the beautiful places I’ve been so blessed to experience and know that I have the knowledge to keep them safe.

There are three obstacles that have stood in my way of progressing toward my goal of being an alpine patroller through the NSP. These three adorable obstacles have the names Lillian, Everett, and Eleanor. I have had the wonderful fortune of being a stay-at-home mom for over a decade. However, this has come at a cost, both financially and personally. They are now in school full-time, and I am currently in my candidate year with Granite Peak Ski Patrol.

The OEC course is the first step in becoming an alpine patroller through the NSP. I am so excited to serve guests on the hill during their time of medical need. In addition, I am looking forward to seeing what kinds of career doors might open with being a ski patroller. Ultimately my greatest desire is to be a lifelong active member of the NSP.

One of the largest obstacles that has stood in my way of getting to where I want to be in skiing and winter travel has been myself and overcoming doubts surrounding whether I am capable of gaining these skills and deserving of being in these spaces. My introduction to winter skills and skiing has been through the search and rescue team, Albuquerque Mountain Rescue, that I have been a member of since 2014. During the more than 7 years I have been in search and rescue, I have worked to build my skills, step into leadership roles, and prove to myself that I belong in these outdoor spaces.

I am still missing the avalanche skills that will allow me to respond to more missions and have greater confidence in my winter skills. This avalanche course will provide the foundational knowledge that I can do things that I have historically not believed myself to be capable of. Being mentored by the incredible women on my team has been instrumental in my growth in the outdoors; seeing women in leadership roles on my team is what initially allowed me to imagine that I could also be a leader in these spaces one day.

Aspen is a co-founder of the Women in Rescue organization whose goal is to increase access, representation, and long-term retention for women in the rescue industry.

As human beings we have basic needs. This concept is best captured in Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. Maslow presents a pyramid with the most fundamental (physiological) need to be met first forming the base, progressing up through social and emotional needs (safety and security, then sense of belonging, and self-esteem) until a person can achieve self-actualization. Experiencing belonging in snows sports in complex. Suffice it to say that I have been weaving through largely male dominated cross sections throughout my entire life--from early schooling (I went to an all-boys school in Pakistan), to the study of science, recreation (mountaineering), work (electric sector) to teaching skiing/snowboarding and to designing & building a house. Even more, as a woman of color, the representation and inclusion in any of the above fields is generally rare.  While the intersectionality of gender, race, and immigration status is complicated, I’m acutely aware as a woman of color in snow sports that security and safety are congestion points in my Maslow’s hierarchy of learning. It was evident that people like me: a dark brown woman with an accent, where English was the third language, an immigrant who didn't dress the part were ever intended to be included in snow sports. I came to skiing late in adulthood. I was mocked and heckled as I used skis that were 20 years too old with boots that barely fit and since I was unable to afford a lift ticket, I hauled my tawny body up a snow-covered golf course hill lugging the weight of antique skis on my shoulder just so I could practice a few downhill runs. Since I didn't have appropriate ski clothing, I would wear my newspaper delivery waterproof yellow jersey that said "New York Newsday" with sweatpants tucked in my ski boots. This was my introduction to skiing. When the snow sports community fosters healthy levels of risk taking, where I can feel psychological and emotional safety absent judgment, it’s only then can I truly leap from the experience of a trust-based relationship to an experience of belonging. When we belong, we thrive.

I was determined to experience the magic of snow. The stillness of winter and the quiet of snow-covered forests are there for me too as a civil right. While security and safety remain a congestion point in my hierarchy of learning, I’m striving within my snow sports community to leap and grow and bring others like me along. Grit would be my middle name. While representation and diversity are valuable, it is inclusion we are all striving for. A place to belong without the shadow of unconscious bias, micro aggressions, verbal assaults, heckling, and hate crimes. My goal is to help the snow sports industry culture become more inclusive—where ALL feel a sense of belonging where a mountain space becomes a mountain home.

Humaira is a PSIA Level 1 instructor at Mt. Hood, the Principal of JEDI Outdoors, has served as the Vice Chair of She Jumps Board of Directors and was just elected to the PSIA Northwest Board of Directors - the first woman of color to serve on the Board in its history. Her motto is “When you invest in me, I invest in others.