MSS Late Summer Newsletter
Updated: Sep 15
It is starting! While a nice long fall with warm sunny days and crisp clear nights is going to be great, we all KNOW that the first fall colors turn our thoughts to snowy mountains.
As the fall gets under way, we want to share important information about upcoming offers and other administrative topics.
Instructor Wage Updates for 2026-2027
The cornerstone of our pay system is the Points Wage System. The strengths of the Points Wage System are that it is transparent, rewards quality and performance, provides a clear path for growth, and gives instructors agency over their professional development. It also allows us the flexibility to prioritize what we believe in.
This winter, we are updating the Points Wage System to increase the points awarded for instructor and guide certifications.
For instructors we are increasing the points awarded for PSIA-AASI Level 2, Level 3, Level 4, Level 5, and Children's Specialist 1, 2, and 3 certifications.
Primary Discipline Cert. Level | FY27 Points |
1 | 20 |
2 | 50 |
3 | 80 |
Trainers Accred 4 | 100 |
Active Examiner PSIA/AASI 5 | 120 |
Children’s Educator Certification | FY27 Points |
1 | 15 |
2 | 35 |
3 | 55 |
For guides, we increased the points awarded for achieving Full Ski Guide and IFMGA certifications.
AMGA | FY27 Points |
Apprentice Ski Guides | 80 |
Assistant Guide | 100 |
Full Ski Guide | 130 |
IFMGA | 160 |
AMGA Instructor | 180 |
We also increased per-student pay in Scouts to $5 per student to recognize the additional effort involved in working with 3- and 4-year-olds and to move closer to parity with student pay for Pioneer lessons.
We are making these changes because we believe professional development should be recognized and rewarded more meaningfully. Achieving certification requires a significant investment of time, effort, and commitment, and reflects a dedication to mastering your craft. When instructors invest in their development, they create better guest experiences, elevate their peers, strengthen our culture, and enhance the reputation of both the Mountain Sports School and Jackson Hole Mountain Resort.
To see the full points wage scale, click here.
Offers!
They are coming soon. With the adjustments to the points wage scale outlined above, we wanted to take the time to be sure the offers were accurate. The returning staff process will feel familiar, but there are a few additional steps this year. As always, please examine your offers closely. If you feel there are inaccuracies, reach out to your pre-season contact asap. It is far easier for us to make corrections early in the process. If you want to change your status, you will have the opportunity to request changes when you accept your offer.
Please review the steps below in preparation for the updated process:
Receive and complete your response to your MSS offer via email.
Follow the link to your ‘Intent to Return’ form. Complete this form. The link to this form will be available in your job response and on your acceptance confirmation letter YOU MUST COMPLETE THIS STEP TO BE ON-BOARDED TO WORK THIS WINTER
Receive and respond to your Lyric offer via email. DO NOT MISS THIS STEP.
Make your onboarding appointment. A link to sign up or an onboarding time will be sent via email upon completion of your intent to return form.
Show up for your on-boarding appointment!
New Onboarding Attendance Requirements this Year
You must complete the on-boarding paperwork you receive within 24 hours of your appointment. If you miss your appointment, you will need to visit HR in person to complete it. We cannot reschedule once your paperwork has been sent to you.
Due to the updated process, we will not be able to accommodate onboarding appointments that are within 24 hours of starting work. Please plan accordingly.
You can find more onboarding details here on the employee website, as well as a step-by-step guide that will be posted shortly.
Apprentice Instructor Program
For the third year in a row, we will be hiring apprentice ski instructors to support our Pioneers and Rough Rider program. The apprentice program is a hybrid work/training program to enable local students to train to become ski instructors while they are still in high school. Apprentices are either under 18 or high school students who are excited to get into ski instruction. They receive three days of training, work 3 days over the December holiday, and work 1 day per weekend for the rest of the season. They always team teach with another instructor and get experience working with Pioneers and Rough Riders. If you know someone who would be a good fit for the program or who wants to know more, have them reach out to Ann, ann.schorling@jacksonhole.com.
SnowCloud
Progress continues to be made in the development of SnowCloud, our new operating system.
We have all the MSS products now LIVE and for sale on the JHMR website. It has been exciting to watch that roll out. Added features such as streamlined ability level choices will make this process simpler and provide us with more specific information about our guest.
The instructor managed functionality is not complete yet. We are still in the testing phase for this. In the meantime, we are advising instructors and guides to generate a calendar and block time for the guests you are in touch with. You will not be booked otherwise; once our scheduling function is available, we will be able to accommodate those date requests.
We are looking forward to testing the instructor management systems and the instructor-facing functions (what YOU will see). What we have seen so far has been very promising; we are excited to share this with you as it gets finalized.
MSS Website
Re-introducing the MSS Website!! As we move on from ProCard, we are identifying features & resources to add that will help keep you up to date now and through the season! Many of the new features will necessitate a move to a password-enabled site, so expect to receive an invitation to join the website and set up a profile and password after you accept your offer. In the meantime, the public portion of the website has multiple pages ready for use:
Future Features
Live Management Announcements
Instructor Contact Lookup
Custom Instructor Profiles
MSS Employee Message Board
Future W 26-27 Tutorials
Full Quicklinks Page
Find the MSS website here: Home | MSS Employees. While much of the public portion of the site is available now, as you look through you may find some of the pages are still a work in progress, so stay tuned as it evolves!
Training
As you accept your offers it will be a good idea to plan your early season training. The calendar will be posted on the mssemployee.com website for reference and we are building a new platform for training that should be available for sign-ups in October.
Returning staff:
Discipline | Fall Training Dates |
Alpine FT and PT+ choose 2 PT and Peak choose 1 | November 30, December 1, 9, 10, 11, 13 or 14 |
Snowboard FT and PT+ choose 2 PT and Peak choose 1 | December 9, 10, 11, 13 or 14 |
Training sessions will be designated by your training cohort which will be shown on your offer. Please register for the appropriate sessions. Full- Time and Part Time Plus Staff must attend 2 days of training, Part Time and Peak staff must attend 1 day of training. Please do not attend more than the required days unless you have talked to your supervisor or the training manager.
For instructors that are joining us for the first time this season, see the schedule below:
New Hire:
Requirement | Dates / Timing |
New Hire on-boarding deadline | Nov 30th |
New hire orientation | Choose 1 day: Nov 24th or Dec 1 |
Instructor Placement Clinic | All days: Dec 2, 3 & 4 |
Development workshop | All days: Dec 7 & 8 |
Shadow lesson | Scheduled by supervisor, 1 day: Dec 9 to Dec 20 |
New Hire Mountain Orientation | Choose 1 day: Dec 16, 17 & 18 |
Certified New Hire Level 2 & 3:
Requirement | Dates / Timing |
New Hire on-boarding deadline | Nov 30th |
New hire orientation | Choose 1 day: Nov 24th or Dec 1 |
Certified New Hire Training | All days: Dec 2 & 3 |
Returning Staff Fall training-Alpine | Choose 2 days: Nov 30, Dec 1, 9, 10, 11, 13 or 14 |
Returning Staff Fall training-Snowboard | Choose 2 days: December 9, 10, 11, 13 or 14 |
Shadow lesson | Scheduled by supervisor, 1 day: Dec 9 to Dec 20 |
Fall Hiking
The fall hiking program returns!!
As in the past, you will get training credit for these events. Your hiking ‘leader’ will submit names to Paul for record keeping.
See the schedule below:
Cascade Canyon
Day | Date | Time | Hike | Location | Contact | Phone |
Tues | Sept 22 | 4PM | Josie's Ridge | Jackson | Allen Symonds | 970-618-6676 |
Thurs | Sept 24 | 4PM | Wildflower Trail | Village | Allen Symonds | 970-618-6676 |
Tues | Sept 29 | 4PM | Crystal Butte | Jackson | Giles Auguestine | 435-714-1169 |
Thurs | Oct 1 | 4PM | Ski Lake | Pass | Joe Graig-Tiso | 307-730-1101 |
Tues | Oct 6 | 4PM | Hoback Trail | Village | Joe Graig-Tiso | 307-730-1101 |
Thurs | Oct 8 | 4PM | Snow King | Jackson | Joe Graig-Tiso | 307-730-1101 |
Tues | Oct 13 | 4PM | History Trail | Pass | Giles Auguestine | 435-714-1169 |
Thurs | Oct 15 | 4PM | Wildflower Trail | Village | Giles Auguestine | 435-714-1169 |
Tues | Oct 20 | 4PM | Josie's Ridge | Jackson | Allen Symonds | 970-618-6676 |
Thurs | Oct 22 | 4PM | Coal Creek | Pass | Allen Symonds | 970-618-6676 |
Tues | Oct 27 | 4PM | Philips Ridge | Pass | Allen Symonds | 970-618-6676 |
Thurs | Oct 29 | 4PM | Hoback Trail | Village | Joe Graig-Tiso | 307-730-1101 |
Wind Down….
The Bungee Tramp, Climbing Wall, Ropes Course and Summer Camp have finished operations for Summer 2026. The Via Ferrata will continue to operate through September and will close the day the tram finishes. Bridger and Sweetwater close this weekend (September 13th) and the Tram will run through Oct 4th.
The Village has some great fall activities to check out. The annual TGR film premier will be on September 19th. This year’s FarOut Fest starts at 2 pm and will be headlined by TGR’s 31st annual film, Actually, It is Rocket Science. Click here for more information- TGR’s FarOut Fest
The weekend of Sept 26-27 will have Oktoberfest activities. Link here for details Oktoberfest 2026 - Jackson Hole Mountain Resort
That’s the update for now. We know there is a lot to digest. Please don’t hesitate to reach out to any of us with questions or concerns. Hope to see you out here for some of the festivities!
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