Skating-Related Opportunities

[blue111moon]

I am completely disgusted that Klingbeil is asking for unpaid work disguised as an "intern".

I have friends working in the fashion/retail industry in NYC and this kind of internship is pretty common.  My co-worker's son is trying to break into design and has worked a series of unpaid internships with major fashion houses just for the opportunity to make contacts within the industry and to have high-end names to put on his resume.  A couple times he's complained that he was nothing more than a stockboy, moving boxes in the back room.  Internships aren't particularly glamourous jobs and no one expects them to be.  But it's one way to get a foot in the door.  And there's no telling what you can learn by keeping your eyes open and doing what you're told.

With Klingbeil selling street shoes now as well as skates, it's not surprising that they're going that route, especially since they're located in NYC's fashion district now.

ETA:  Klingbeil's most recent post on Facebook says that they're looking for a PAID intern/employee now.

[retired]

Unpaid internships are illegal in Canada with some exception so I am distressed at the trend free resume building that I see in the USA.  The exceptions are if they are done while the person is currently a student, an outline of what they will learn, and feedback is provided to the college or university and the job can't be one that the business would otherwise hire for.  Bell Canada (our big telco) was in hot water over this recently, having a entire department being nothing but interns who thought that interning would lead to a job but really they only got to interact with other interns. The really good universities find paid intern positions for their students btw, doing a degree on a co-op basis with paid work semesters means less student loan burden although it takes five years, not four to graduate.  Also, most co-op students land a job based on their work terms, or if they didn't get a good fit, can try a different place next work term.   

Skate Canada advertised for an unpaid intern this spring.  They were looking for a university student, in new media, and it was a bit dodgy as to whether the job was truly a learning intern because the brief read more like "fix our systems please", however since it was limited to current enrolled students it was legal.

Nice to see that Klingbeil is now going to pay someone.

[blue111moon]

Since Klingbeil is in NYC, the Canadian laws don't really apply.

[FigureSpins]

I grew up and went to college in NYC.  My college used to have an internship recruiting team that found paid internships for their students.  They had an in-house application and interview process to match up interns and companies.  A lot of Manhattan companies would create multiple summer internship positions to find their next full-time recruits after graduation.

Back in the day, unpaid internships were accepted by career-changers and people who had no experience or training whatsoever.   More often than not, the same ad would appear in the Wall Street Journal or NY Times week after week because people would apply for paid jobs first.  (To be honest, I never looked at the fashion trade ads; I was interested in corporations and conglomerates.)  I remember seeing many, many unpaid internships at charities like the Legal Aid Society, Fresh Air Fund, YMCA/YMHA/JCC and other non-profits.

My first internship was for a pharmaceutical firm.  They hired 6 of us to work the summer in their IT department.  Most of the interns did COBOL programming, but two of us (incl. myself) were selected to work in the Information Center.  To me, that job had the better description: we would be using high-level programming tools and interacting with other departments.  I loved it, as did my friend Rich, but we learned early on to NOT ask V (mgr) for work.  V would give us magazine articles to photocopy and collate.  B (asst mgr) would map out a real project that required programming, reporting and analysis.  He was patient and explained things well; a much-better experience.  The company kept us on for almost two years, with Rich and I splitting the hours during the school year.  We were able to network with other companies' IC's to find out what they did differently/better/worse.  We also received independent-study credits toward our degree by writing a white paper together on effective Info Centers.  (Today, they'd call this "best practices.)

[FigureSpins]

Steamboat Spring, CO is looking for a Figure Skating Instructor.


http://www.jobswithballs.com/jobs/1814015/figure-skating-instructor.asp

Figure Skating Instructor: The Steamboat Springs Figure Skating Club is looking for a part-time Figure Skating Coach. USFSA and PSA membership, private lessons, group lessons, ice shows and competitions. Coaching experience with Basic skills - Senior level preferred. Please contact the SSFSC at 846-7160.

[FigureSpins]

Group Sales & Promotions Coordinator
RDV Ice Den, Orlando, FL

Group Sales & Promotions Coordinator

Responsible for handling all aspects of group sales and field trips including fundraising opportunities though public skating.  Also, responsible for coordinating all Ice Den promotions as they relate to public skating, hockey, figure skating and special events.

LINK

[Isk8NYC]

From the PSA Job Placements: http://www.skatepsa.com/Job-Placements-p.htm

Skating Coaches Wanted! (8/28/2013)

The Breezy Point Figure Skating Club, a community-oriented organization, is seeking highly energetic individuals with excellent communication skills to assist in building our skating programs. Coaching positions are open for Beginning Hockey, beginning and advanced Figure (basic skills through Senior Moves in the Field/Free Skating), beginning Synchro and Power Stroking Coaches. This USFS Club is dedicated to teaching community members the love of skating and is forming new classes now.

Please contact Elizabeth Robeck at breezypointfsc@gmail.com
or mail your resume to BPFSC P.O. Box 143, Breezy Point, MN 56472

[Isk8NYC]

From the PSA Job Placements: http://www.skatepsa.com/Job-Placements-p.htm

Skating Director Wanted: SkateQuest (8/28/2013)

Job Summary:
Design and implement Ice Shows, Learn to Skate Program, Freestyle, and other special events.  Assign group lesson and off-ice instructors. Coordinate the intense ice user and summer camp programs.  Develop the Skating Program's annual budget and ensure it is being met. 
Duties and Responsibilities: 
1.Responsible for the design, formation, and implementation of figure skating and learn to skate programs.
2.Coordinate and produce all special event ice shows in the facility and ensure efficient operations of shows.
3.Available to instruct classes as needed.
4.Maintain a complete set of written policies and procedure with respect to figure skating programs and ensure compliance of all instructors. 
5.Coordinate program scheduling
6.Coordinate on-site skating competitions. 
7.Attend staff meetings as required.
8.Oversee program administration.
9.Advises General Manager of dates and ice time requirements for events, shows, and competitions.
10.Responsible for coaches' payroll and ensuring all fees/insurance forms/contracts are up-to-date.
11.Responsible for contracting, discipline, and termination of coaches contracts as necessary.   

Please submit a cover letter and resume by mail or e-mail to:

Alejandra Mueller
1800 Michael Faraday Ct, Reston, VA 20190
amueller@skatequest.com

[Isk8NYC]

From the PSA Job Placements: http://www.skatepsa.com/Job-Placements-p.htm

FULL-TIME POSITION: FIGURE SKATING COACH  Shattuck-St. Mary's School (8/22/2013)

The full-time Figure Skating Coach would be responsible for team coaching of the Shattuck-St. Mary's Figure Skating Team skaters. 

Position responsibilities include, but are not limited to:
•Coaching basic skating skills through Senior level + Learn to Skate
•Knowledge of Off Ice Training; Strength & Conditioning, Yoga
•Choreography; test  and show programs
•Perform weeknight/weekend duty for boarding program as appropriate

QUALIFICATIONS:
•Graduation from a college or university with a degree in Education/BioMechanics/Dance/Business, or closely related field.  Experience may offset lack of college degree.
•At least 5 years' experience as a Figure Skating Coach 
•Working knowledge of IJS Scoring System and 6.0
•Must be USFS and PSA member and pursuing ratings
* PSA Program Director ratings preferred

TO APPLY:

Email cover letter, three references and current resume to:  hr@s-sm.org.   Application materials will be received thru 4:00 p.m., Friday, Aug. 30th, 2013 or until position is filled. 

[Isk8NYC]

From the PSA Job Placements: http://www.skatepsa.com/Job-Placements-p.htm

Job Opportunities in Wheaton, Maryland

Ice Skating Director
$41,932-$71,750

The Montgomery County Department of Parks, Wheaton Ice Arena seeks an Ice Skating Director to perform professional managerial work in the programming and operation of a multi-functional facility with an NHL rink, pro shop, snack bar, locker rooms, weight rooms, party/meeting rooms, and bleacher seating. The Ice Skating Director reports to the Ice Rink Manager and works with staff in developing, implementing, and conducting skating programs and activities, and assists in managing overall ice rink operations.

Building Supervisor/Ice Technician
$41,932-$71,750

The Montgomery County Department of Parks, Wheaton Ice Arena, seeks an individual to perform duties as the Ice Technician and Building Supervisor. Primary duties include performing routine maintenance on one National Hockey League (NHL) ice surface, overseeing building operations, monitoring building systems, overseeing maintenance and repairs on ice equipment, supervising staff, overseeing facility contractors, budgeting and tracking expenditures for facility maintenance.

Please visit www.mncppc.org/jobs for more information and to apply.

[Isk8NYC]

From the PSA Job Placements: http://www.skatepsa.com/Job-Placements-p.htm

Roseville Figure Skating Club (8/13/2013)
Director, Synchronized Skating Program

Roseville Figures Skating Club, located in the Metro area of Mpls/St. Paul, is accepting applications for the position of Director/Head Coach, Synchronized Skating.  The club is seeking a director for its existing program.   

Qualifications/Responsibilities Include:   Responsible for overall management and operation of the Roseville Figure Skating Synchronized Program.

Reports to:   Roseville Figure Skating Board of Directors

Job Duties & Responsibilities:                           
•Coordinating and scheduling on-and off-ice practices
•Conducting Summer Synchro Camp Scheduling competitions, ice shows, exhibitions and other events. 
•Choreography, music and costuming
•Experience recruiting, team building, budgeting, scheduling and conducting activities related to running a successful multi-level synchronized skating program required. 
•Understanding of IJS and USFS rules and requirements
•Monthly reporting on program to RFSC Board at monthly meetings
•Follow all policies in the RFSC Handbook section 2.2.2  regarding this position
•Be a positive role model for young skaters 

Classification: Exempt Employee
Reporting Requirement: Reports to the Roseville Figure Skating Club Board of Directors
Salary: Commensurate with experience
Application: Send letter of application and resume to: Nancy Reimann, President, RFSC,   RSC,  2100 Civic Center Dr., Roseville, MN  55112 or nreimann@comcast.net.  No calls will be accepted. Review of resume and applications will begin immediately and applicants will be accepted until position has been filled.

[Isk8NYC]

From the ISI Classifieds: http://www.skateisi.com/site/Sub.Cfm?Content=Classifieds#results#

Job Type: Openings - Skating Instructor Date Posted: September 12,2013 Job Title: Ice Dance Coach Job Description: Very busy twin-rink facility in the southeast U.S. needs male ice dance coach for all levels of skaters, from beginner to national level, tots to adults. Should also be prepared to take ISI classes for all levels of skaters. Email resume. Email Address: southeasticedancecoach@gmail.com

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Job Type: Openings - Hockey Director,Openings - Manager Date Posted: September 04,2013 Job Title: Assistant Facility Manager / Hockey Coordinator Job Description: City of Shaker Heights, Ohio  Recreation department presently has a full-time opening at Thornton Park. Position offers a competitive salary/benefits package. Salary: $42,216 - $50,182 DOQ. Email resume. For additional information go to citys website Email Address: human.resources@shakeronline.com Web Address: shakeronline.com

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Job Type: Openings - Skating Instructor Date Posted: August 20,2013 Job Title: Skating Instructors Job Description: Ice facility in Northeast Kingdom of Vermont seeks enthusiastic coaches to teach innovative group figure skating classes for beginners through Freestyle 6. Youth to adult classes run Friday evenings from October through early February. Instructors must follow ISI standards and choreograph a routine for the annual ice show for their assigned group. If you have a skating background, we are willing to work with you starting as student teacher to meet goals. Email Address: info@chesterarena.com



(Can I just interject something?  "Northeast Kingdom of Vermont" is a cool name for a region; it's apparently an area like "NY Metro." Way cooler name.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northeast_Kingdom

[FigureSpins]

CRP Management Group, Arlington, VA
Retail Buyer - Ice Rinks

http://jobview.monster.com/Retail-Buyer-Job-Arlington-VA-US-126781769.aspx?from=indeed

Closes 11/15/2013

[AgnesNitt]

There's nothing to interpret: the Klingbeil listing clearly says "office assistant," and the job responsibilities list clerical tasks.  They're not looking for a fitter or boot maker.

The law says an internship has to be training, and has to be  for the intern's benefit.

Maybe someone could drop the dime on Klingbeil, what they're doing is slave labor.

If you can't tell, I have a very very low opinion of internships.

[Query]

No one would work for Klingbeil as an unpaid office assistant - there would be no benefit. So I assume they get some training. Anyway, we are all just speculating - you would have to talk to Klingbeil to find out what it was all about.

Another example of an unpaid internship, by another name, closer to home to some of you: Quite a few skating rinks start out their instructors (who they often train in the art of teaching) as unpaid volunteers who assist the paid instructors.

(One of my rinks keeps them that way, and uses them as primary instructors [like me]. Programs that use paid instructors can be more selective about who teaches, so they usually do a better job - but many of the kids in this rink's program wouldn't have the opportunity if they had to pay.)

Another example of an unpaid internship that I think I already mentioned, but I will explain more fully to show how useful an unpaid internship can be to the student: Most U.S. congress people, as well as the president are strongly dependent on unpaid political interns. They do a lot of the grunt work, like reading proposed new laws; sometimes they help write the new laws, and they do a lot of the research. You talk to the lobbyists, and you often tell the congressmen and women what political positions they should hold. In that sense, it is one of the most influential positions in American (U.S.) politics. You make contacts with very influential people, and you learn the ins and outs of how the U.S. political system works. It is supposed to be very useful for future political careers, and to activists who wish to effect future political events. (BTW, Monica Lewinski was an unpaid White House political intern, but I hope she wasn't typical.)

Another example of an unpaid internship, that has become almost universal in the U.S.: Most U.S., high school (grades 10-12, ages about 16-19) students are required by law to provide "community service". They can choose where they do their service (e.g., the examples I gave above), but they don't have a choice about doing it. Other unpaid internships don't trouble me, because the student has that choice. But school-required community service really is slave labor, and I feel very strongly that it is wrong to have such a requirement.

Anyway, isn't this whole sub-thread a bit off topic? I assume the thread was intended to help skaters find paid jobs, not to discuss whether or not a specific unpaid internship is ethical.

[FigureSpins]

This is a great opportunity, albeit short-term:

LINK: http://www.nbcunicareers.com/view-job?id=193892

Job Number  13113BR 
Job Title  Olympic Skating Web Producer 
Business Segment  NBC Sports Group 
Sub-Business  NBC Olympics 

Country  United States 
State/Province  Connecticut 
City  Stamford 
Responsibilities  PLEASE NOTE: This is a project, non-staff position with an estimated duration of four to six weeks, unless otherwise amended or terminated.

Role purpose:
The successful candidate will report to the Coordinating Producer and Managing Editor of NBCOlympics.com during the Sochi Olympic Games. Position requires generating and publishing Olympic sports content across digital media platforms, in particular the NBCOlympics Web site, with a focus on figure skating.

Responsibilities :
• Take ownership of the figure skating sport hubs and all related pages within NBCOlympics.com, ensuring their content is timely, relevant, accurate and compelling.
• Handle all aspects of publishing content, such as posting wire stories, building photo galleries, generating interactive elements (e.g. polls), writing headlines/teasers/captions, etc.
• Quickly master the NBCOlympics.com publishing tool to ensure content is presented properly on the site, is comprehensively related to other content, is included as necessary in automated workflows, etc.
• Leverage social media tools to share content and engage users.
• Incorporate video footage strategically into the site per internal policies/guidelines.
• Interface with video and technical teams for efficient production of video content, including livestream coverage of Olympic events. 
Qualifications/Requirements  Basic Qualifications
• Minimum two years' experience in pressurized editorial environments.
• At least two years of experience working for a sports-related Web site.
• Knowledge of -- and interest in -- Olympic figure skating is essential.
• Solid figure skating experience, with knowledge of the rules, scoring and key athletes.
• Must have a understanding of sports content and presentation on the Web.
• Ability to work efficiently under pressure, to meet deadlines, to sustain focus on assigned duties and to multi-task.
• Proficiency at discerning story lines and analyzing stories.
• Familiarity with HTML and web authoring tools and software such as Photoshop.
• Familiarity with AP style and ability to create clean, cliché-free copy.
• Ability to quickly learn and master content management system.

[dlbritton]

This is a great opportunity, albeit short-term:

LINK: http://www.nbcunicareers.com/view-job?id=193892


Job Number  13113BR
Job Title  Olympic Skating Web Producer
Business Segment  NBC Sports Group
Sub-Business  NBC Olympics

Role purpose:
The successful candidate will report to the Coordinating Producer and Managing Editor of NBCOlympics.com during the Sochi Olympic Games. Position requires generating and publishing Olympic sports content across digital media platforms, in particular the NBCOlympics Web site, with a focus on figure skating.

Sure wish I was qualified. I would take a leave of absence from my full time job to work on this. I could do the technical side, just not the content side.

[sk8tegirl06]

Dream job right there....

[FigureSpins]

Received this via email from the PSA:

The Greenville (SC) County Recreation is looking for coaches with excellent communication skills and experienced with coaching beginner to high level U. S. Figure Skating Programs. Coaching responsibilities include Learn to Skate class instruction to Senior MIF and Senior Free Skating instruction. Candidates must be members of PSA and USFS and rated. If you are interested please visit our website at www.greenvilleRec.com click on "Employment... Join our Team" and fill out your information.

[Query]

Athletic Trainer for Fort Dupont Ice Arena in Washington, DC

http://www.fdia.org/sites/default/files/u2/Off-Ice%20Coach%20-%20Job%20Description.pdf

The organization is a charity, so don't expect a super-high rate of pay.

[Query]

I know this is an old thread, but I came across a listing for jobs that include some ice-related opportunities, through "Rink Management Services", possibly the biggest company to run ice rinks in the U.S.A.

  http://rinkmanagement.hrmdirect.com/employment/job-openings.php

that might interest some of you.

They don't have very high nominal minimum qualifications (e.g., to be a LTS instructor, they require USFSA freestyle 1 or "equivalent" test level; more typical requirements are one or two senior level gold tests), but it is also possible that they get so many applicants that you actually need higher qualifications.