RidgeWalker

ANASAZI FOUNDATION

Mesa, Arizona

JOB DESCRIPTION

Job Title: Back-Up / RidgeWalker
Department: Field Operations
Reports To: Field Leadership
FLSA Status: Non-Exempt
Date Revised: September 2026

Position Summary

The Back-Up / RidgeWalker is an experienced field staff member responsible for providing leadership, safety oversight, navigation, transportation, emergency response, and logistical support within ANASAZI Foundation’s Outdoor Behavioral Health Care Program.

This position supports TrailWalkers and YoungWalkers in remote outdoor environments and helps ensure safe, effective, and consistent field operations. The Back-Up / RidgeWalker does not independently provide psychotherapy, diagnosis, treatment planning, or nursing services.

Essential Duties & Responsibilities

• Provide field leadership, guidance, and support to TrailWalkers and YoungWalkers.


• Assist with continuous protective oversight and client safety in remote outdoor environments.


• Navigate using maps, GPS, established routes, and other approved navigation resources.


• Monitor weather, terrain, water availability, environmental hazards, staffing, supplies, and other conditions affecting field safety.


• Safely operate ANASAZI vehicles on paved, unpaved, and rugged roads, including four-wheel-drive vehicles when assigned.


• Support client treatment goals established by the clinical team while maintaining appropriate behavioral health role boundaries.


• Assist staff with behavioral concerns, conflict resolution, de-escalation, and crisis situations.


• Respond appropriately to emergencies, client elopement, medical concerns, evacuations, transportation needs, and other significant field events.


• Provide first aid, emergency assistance, or medication support only when appropriately trained, authorized, and permitted.


• Maintain and monitor field communication equipment, emergency supplies, vehicles, food, water, and other assigned resources.


• Coordinate field resupply, transportation, staff movement, and other logistical needs as assigned.


• Maintain timely and accurate field documentation and incident reporting.


• Promptly communicate significant client, staff, medical, behavioral, safety, or environmental concerns to appropriate personnel.


• Maintain professional boundaries, confidentiality, client rights, and mandatory-reporting requirements.


• Participate in required training, meetings, competency assessments, emergency preparedness, and quality-improvement activities.

Minimum Qualifications

Education

• High school diploma or GED required.

Experience

• Minimum of six months of relevant ANASAZI field experience or comparable direct-care/outdoor program experience required.


• Experience with youth, behavioral health, outdoor programming, field leadership, or emergency response preferred.

Licensure / Certifications

• Valid driver’s license and satisfactory driving eligibility/insurance requirements for assigned vehicle operation.


• Current CPR and First Aid certification.


• Arizona Fingerprint Clearance Card as required by applicable law and ANASAZI policy.


• Wilderness First Aid (WFA), Wilderness First Responder (WFR), EMT, or other advanced first-aid certification as required for assigned responsibilities.


• Required ANASAZI field, safety, emergency-response, driver, and competency training.


• Previous four-wheel-drive or off-road driving experience preferred; ability to learn and demonstrate safe operation required when assigned.

ANASAZI will verify required education, experience, credentials, qualifications, driving eligibility, and competencies in accordance with applicable requirements.

Required Competencies

• Field leadership and client supervision


• Outdoor safety and risk awareness


• Navigation, route planning, and environmental assessment


• Four-wheel-drive and vehicle safety when assigned


• Behavioral support, de-escalation, and crisis response


• Emergency response, evacuation, and elopement procedures


• First aid and medication support when trained and authorized


• Field communication systems and emergency equipment


• Documentation and incident reporting


• Client rights, confidentiality, professional boundaries, and mandatory reporting


• ANASAZI philosophy, outdoor education, and field practices


• Sound judgment, reliability, communication, teamwork, and leadership

Competency will be assessed and documented according to ANASAZI policy and applicable regulatory, licensing, and accreditation requirements.

Physical & Environmental Essential Functions

This position requires the ability to:

• Hike approximately 3–15 miles per day over rugged, uneven, and remote terrain.


• Carry a backpack weighing approximately 50 pounds or more for extended periods, including personal food, clothing, belongings, and assigned emergency or field equipment.


• Stand, walk, climb, bend, kneel, lift, carry, and perform physically demanding activities for extended periods.


• Participate in multi-day and overnight outdoor assignments.


• Function safely in varying temperatures, weather conditions, terrain, and elevations.


• Maintain sufficient mobility and environmental awareness to respond to client and field-safety needs.

Qualified individuals must be able to perform the essential functions with or without reasonable accommodation, consistent with applicable law.

Working Conditions & Schedule

Work is primarily performed in remote outdoor environments and may include multi-day and overnight assignments, weekends, holidays, irregular hours, and emergency response.

Employees may be exposed to extreme temperatures, changing weather, rugged terrain, insects, wildlife, off-road travel, behavioral crises, and other conditions inherent to outdoor field operations.

Compliance & Professional Expectations

The Back-Up / RidgeWalker must comply with applicable federal and Arizona requirements, AZDHS requirements, applicable Joint Commission standards, ANASAZI safety and field policies, client rights, confidentiality, mandatory-reporting requirements, and organizational procedures.

The employee may perform only those direct-care, emergency, medication-support, transportation, or other duties for which the employee has been appropriately trained, determined competent, and authorized.

The Back-Up / RidgeWalker supports implementation of the client’s established treatment plan but does not independently diagnose, provide psychotherapy, develop or modify clinical treatment plans, or perform nursing services unless separately qualified and authorized to do so.

Other Duties

This description identifies the position’s primary responsibilities and essential functions and is not exhaustive. Other duties may be assigned when consistent with the position, employee competency, and applicable requirements.