President - nick barkidjija
Nick is from Chicago and grew up exploring the wilderness of Illinois and the surrounding states. He spends his weekends hiking and backpacking when he isn’t at the beach, and enjoys taking others freediving. He has a Wilderness First Responder certification. As the President of SCO, he oversees the well-being, operations, and strategic direction of the organization.
Trip Director - sidney kalin
Sidney is from Danville, CA and spent her childhood exploring California. In her free time, she enjoys ultrarunning, long-distance backpacking, fostering puppies, and cooking delicious gluten-free food. She is certified as a Wilderness First Responder. As Trip Director, she hopes to share her love of the outdoors with others by ensuring we run safe, organized, fun trips!
Membership Director - blake buchholz
Blake is from a small town called Hudson, Wisconsin where he grew up reading in the forests of his backyard. Upon arriving at USC he fell in love with the beautiful outdoors of California and strives to share that love with others as a SCO guide. He works to foster a tight knit SCO community and is the link between guides and members. This is done through the member events he organizes and the other new ways he gets SCO to reach more students.
Finance DIrector - justin Nguyen
Keeping trip costs low and making sure the books don’t go negative.
Training Directors - emma rohrer and nate boxer
Nate is from Palo Alto, CA and grew up exploring Northern California. He is a certified Wilderness First Responder and loves to camp, hike, backpack, and do all things outdoors. Along with Emma, he is stoked to teach the incoming class of guides about all things SCO, helping guides lead fun and safe trips!
With her good pal Nate, Emma works to foster a sense of belonging within the new guide community and best equip them for leading successful trips. Emma is a Wilderness First Responder, USC Scientific SCUBA Diver, and a massive theater geek. She loves the West Coast (thanks to adventures with SCOutfitters), but she holds a special place in her heart for the green forests and white mountains of New England where she grew up. Emma is thrilled to be a New Guide Trainer for the 2024 guide class and get more people exploring!
Technology Director - Caroline dworken
Caroline grew up hiking with her family in northern Virginia and has taken that love for the outdoors everywhere since. She spends her weekends hiking, camping, backpacking, and rock climbing in the wilderness around LA and loves to introduce others to her favorite pastimes. She is Wilderness First Responder certified, AIARE I Avalanche training certified, and has taken courses in rock climbing partner rescue as well as crevasse rescue for glacial mountaineering. As the Director of Technology, Caroline operates the technology essential to our website, ticketing, and payment infrastructures and maintains the online systems we rely on for efficient customer service.
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Directors - Logan decker and agustin montes tacuba
Curate and retain our partnerships with local service organizations, and keep the SC Outfitters community informed of volunteer opportunities within our monthly trip cycles.
Agustin grew up in Portland, Oregon and fell in love with the outdoors exploring Mt. Hood, the Columbia River Gorge, and the North Cascades . He is driven by making the outdoors affordable and accessible for disadvantaged communities.
Equipment Director (“Gear-u”) - sedona silva
As the club’s Equipment Director, Sedona ensures that SCO’s gear stays in good condition for our trips, purchases new general and sport-specific gear for future trips, and manages first-aid and trip safety materials that guides carry for trips.
WFR & recruitment Director - bella childre
Bella organizes Wilderness First Responder training for our guides and runs recruitment for new guides.
Sponsorship and Communications Director - Betsy Schmeler
Betsy is from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and grew up riding mountain bikes and playing in bands. In her free time she loves to go on a quick jaunt whether that be to Joshua Tree or even just the Silverlake Reservoir. Betsy loves making content and getting the word of SCO spread!
Guide Relations Directors - annabelle olson and natalia ratner
Annabelle and Natalia ensure that our guides have the resources they need to connect with each other and the member community. Fosters a strong guide community to support the best leadership and communication on trips.
Natalia is an Environmental Engineering major who is passionate about protecting our planet & getting outside. She has worked as a ski instructor at Mt. Bachelor and is a certified Wilderness First Responder. When she’s not in class, you’ll find her rock climbing, skiing, surfing and backpacking.