Jackson Hole BIPOC women's camp scholarship application

[snoWYmonkey]

Divas! The 4th annual BIPOC three day camp is happening in March and the application for those needing full or partial scholarships can be found if your scroll down the camp info in this link: JH women of color ski camp

The camp is open to women who are US citizens or DACA recipients and over the age of 21. Beginner to advanced skiers are welcome to apply. The camp is small in size and usually has about 100 plus applications for around 10 spots.

2 days of lessons at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort, 1 day of intro to backcountry skiing in Grand Teton National Park and amazing apres yoga, hot springs and meditation sessions.

Happy to answer questions for any interested Ski Divas, and please share with friends who might be interested.

 

[Pequenita]

I did a backcountry tour with Jessica in 2019 and found her incredibly down to earth. People who do this camp are in for a treat!

 

[snoWYmonkey]

I did a backcountry tour with Jessica in 2019 and found her incredibly down to earth. People who do this camp are in for a treat!

She does a fantastic job keeping the camp vibe real and supportive while keeping the focus on the shared passion which is the skiing. A guest coach is Annette Diggs who founded EDGE outdoors and is also an amazing upbeat woman leader in bringing more inclusion to skiing and mountain sports.

 

[ilovepugs]

I feel bad posting a somewhat grumbly response but here goes…….. I so appreciate you posting this, but wish the cost and camp dates were more widely publicized in advance. I checked for info in the fall as I made my travel plans and this wasn’t online yet, though other touring opportunities were publicized. I’d love to go and by most socioeconomic measures don’t *need* financial support, but I’m also not in the position to drop several thousand dollars on the camp with only two months’ notice to budget and plan for it, plus setting aside vacation time and making pet care arrangements. I guess I’ll apply and see what they say. I’ve wanted to do this camp for a couple of years!!

 

[snoWYmonkey]

I feel bad posting a somewhat grumbly response but here goes…….. I so appreciate you posting this, but wish the cost and camp dates were more widely publicized in advance. I checked for info in the fall as I made my travel plans and this wasn’t online yet, though other touring opportunities were publicized. I’d love to go and by most socioeconomic measures don’t *need* financial support, but I’m also not in the position to drop several thousand dollars on the camp with only two months’ notice to budget and plan for it, plus setting aside vacation time and making pet care arrangements. I guess I’ll apply and see what they say. I’ve wanted to do this camp for a couple of years!!

I totally get the frustration. I plan my holidays a year or so in advance.

If it helps at all, know that this is not a camp organized by a resort with a finance department and marketing department and camp coordinators, but just by one human with three full time jobs and two kids.

She can't advertise it until she has managed to do all the fundraising and secured sponsorships for gear, tickets, rentals, instructors, lodging, and travel, which she does by herself, as only then does she know if it can even happen and how many students she can budget for.

None of the coaches know for sure either, but we love the fact that in the day and age of companies trying to gain points for their inclusion efforts, this camp is a true grass roots non-commercialized event.

Partial scholarships have been offered in the past where a small or large share was covered by the camp or the participant. I believe there is a spot to state that you can contribute some towards the camp if that feels appropriate.

I hope this reply does not come across as minimizing your disappointment, it is more just an explanation as to the reason for the late announcement compared to some of her other camps.

 

[ilovepugs]

I hope this reply does not come across as minimizing your disappointment, it is more just an explanation as to the reason for the late announcement compared to some of her other camps.

Thank you - I appreciate that you took my comment in the spirit in which it was intended and understand the intent behind your comment as well! I also appreciate you confirming what I surmised to be the case (i.e. that she must have needed the time to do fundraising and confirm the camp’s capacity before announcing it).

I’m going to perseverate a bit more here (it helps me process things to verbalize them). Just feels unfortunate to be asking for scholarship resources when, given the opportunity to budget and plan, I could pay my own way and possibly contribute to other participants’ experience as well. I thought about reaching out to ask what the cost was in order to sign up for next year, but that doesn’t guarantee me a spot — or if it does, it feels icky to subvert a competitive process by paying to play.

Meh, this assumes I would be accepted. Idk if this is the year for me in any event. Still a ton of life stuff going on. I’ll keep you @snoWYmonkey posted if I end up deciding to apply!

 

[snoWYmonkey]

Thank you for being up front with your concerns, and continuing the dialogue. I am in no way a spokesperson for the camp or Jessica, so I can't speak to some of your thoughts above.

I know that as one of the handful of people that does review the applications, I am always blown away by the caliber of the women in their respective community involvement. Ultimately I think that is what matters most, though of course not needing a scholarship or minimal funding, is probably a factor, but not the main one.

I would stress that the camp is about skiing, as much as it is about connections and stoke about being in the mountains as a strong group of often marginalized women, especially in the US ski resort environment. There is no formal or planned discussion, as the small size of the camp allows for that to happen between the campers more organically. The final day is a bit rushed, and thus more of an intro to BC skiing, with a chance to spend time in the park, than a true ski tour.

I do not know the specifics of past participants, but do know that two were not at all scholarship recipients. I suspect a couple of other ladies, were partials. One of the ladies now sponsors one of the dinners which is really cool and she was a rank beginner who started skiing purely for professional advancement reasons and is now in love with the sport.

 

[marzNC]

Good to know that JH also has a BIWOC camp. I was only aware of what Deb Armstrong had done the last couple seasons at Taos. I know an instructor who attended who is working towards passing the Level 3 exams. I gather that Big Sky has been hosting a similar program as well, with the clinics happening in late February 2024. For Big Sky PSIA partners with Women of Winter and NBS.

 

[snoWYmonkey]

@marzNC I just wish to reiterate that this is not a Jackson whole Mountain Resort camp and it is not listed under their events. The founder of the camp does work for the resort as a master instructor and Backcountry ski guide but she has chosen to continue to manage the camp 100% by herself in order to minimize the the commercialization of diversity programming. I suspect she also did not want to see the size of the camp grow to be so big that the sense of connection between the participants gets lost.

 

[marzNC]

I suspect she also did not want to see the size of the camp grow to be so big that the sense of connection between the participants gets lost.

Makes sense. The limit for the Big Sky camps is 24, split across separate groups.

The BIWOC camp done by Deb Armstrong at Taos was for 7 women. The same max that applies to regular Taos Ski Weeks. Two chairs for a quad lift. The second year there were several return students. Most were working towards Level 2 exams. As I remember, the oldest was over 65. I happened to be wandering around the main base last season as they were finishing up on Friday afternoon. The instructor I know and I were each surprised to see each other.

As far as I can tell, when the concept began in 2021, Windham in NY and Hyland Hills in MN were also hosts for 2022.