Directors
Lisa and Scott Shaffer are the owners and executive directors of Shaffer's High Sierra Camp. They live about 30 minutes north of San Francisco in the off-season, and have two teenage sons.
Scott
Scott was born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area (long enough ago that it would be impolite to ask him when). He has an eclectic background ranging from camp counselor to ski instructor to lawyer to Superior Court Judge Pro Tem. Scott earned his bachelor's degree in telecommunications and film from San Diego State University and his law degree from the University of California, Hastings College of the Law. He practiced law for a number of years, including volunteer work as a Superior Court Judge Pro Tem, before founding Shaffer's High Sierra Camp.
Lisa
Lisa graduated from California State University, Northridge with a degree in health education, and from California State University, Chico with her teaching credential. After graduation, Lisa taught middle school for eight years in Marin County, California. Since 2001, Lisa has directed camp year-round and her vision is that Camp is a place where each camper and staff member will grow and thrive.
The Shaffers know first hand the lasting and positive value that camp can have on a child's life and are committed to making each camper's experience at Shaffer's High Sierra Camp as fun and rewarding as they would want for their own two children.
Bridget
Bridget is our Director and has been with Shaffer's High Sierra Camp since 2009. She graduated from Chico State and earned her Masters degrees in Interdisciplinary Studies: Wilderness Therapy. Bridget's year-round role includes talking with parents, hiring and managing staff, and overseeing our summer program. During the summer season, she'll also lead an occasional mountain bike ride or overnight adventure. Bridget is passionate about outdoor education and the opportunity camp provides for campers to grow and connect with others in a safe environment.
Brent
Brent is one of our assistant directors, joining camp for the summer of 2026. He brings a deep love of the outdoors and a passion for experiential learning to his role as Assistant Director at camp. Born in Minnesota, he earned his degree in Environmental Design from North Dakota State University. Soon after graduating, Brent felt the pull of the West and made the move to California in 2008. Captivated by the beauty and rugged spirit of the Sierra Nevada mountain range, Brent built a career rooted in outdoor adventure and education. For 15 years prior to joining the Shaffer’s High Sierra Camp team, he worked with Outward Bound and other outdoor education programs, guiding students through transformative wilderness experiences and fostering leadership, resilience, and connection to the natural world. With his extensive experience, thoughtful leadership style, and genuine enthusiasm for the outdoors, Brent is dedicated to creating meaningful, growth-filled experiences for every camper and staff member he works with.
Ronan
Ronan is one of the Shaffers and is an assistant director, responsible for marketing, facilities, and IT at Camp. Ronan literally grew up at camp, getting driven to camp on the day school ended and returned home the day before school started. When he became camp age, he attended camp as a camper and then a counselor. Ronan took a break from camp to attend Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, where he earned a degree in mechanical engineering. Immediately after graduating, he worked for camp in an admin role.before taking a job as a mechanical engineer in the research and develoment department of a large equipment manufacturer in Reno. In late 2026, camp lured him back. Ronan (unsurprisingly) developed a love of nature and spends every free moment in the mountains, skiing, backpacking and mountaineering. In ealy 2026, he and a friend made the second ascent of a volcano mountain on an island in the Aluetian chain in Alaska, and then made the first ski descent of the same mountain.
Emma
Emma started her history with Shaffer's High Sierra Camp in 2010 as a camper at age 13 for several summers, and returned to work as a counselor and visual arts lead throughout her summers in college. She graduated from UC Santa Barbara with a degree in Global Studies and German. Emma went on to get a TESOL teaching certificate and taught English and math to kindergarteners and elementary school children in Thailand. Preferring outdoor education to the classroom setting, she eventually made her way back to camp on the admin side of things and has worked full time for SHSC since 2023. She currently helps oversee program activities and scheduling, and hires seasonal program staff in the off-season, as well as helps communicate the camper experience and the importance of camp magic to camp parents. In her off time, she lives in Reno with her camp kitty Melly, and enjoys skiing, knitting, reading, and ceramics, among other things that combine her love of creativity and the outdoors.
Counselors & Activity Specialists
Typically, the Camp receives about 30 inquiries from around the world for each open position. We've been able to be highly selective and have had some truly exceptional counselors and activity specialists. Every counselor and activity specialist is carefully screened for his/her maturity, judgment, abilities, and enthusiasm.
They must be at least 19 years old or 18 with a year of college and most need certification in basic first aid and CPR. The Camp also enjoys having international staff for the diversity and new exposure that provides for campers. Each counselor's top priority is the campers' physical and emotional safety. (But making sure campers have fun is not far behind.)
The Camp is acutely aware of its responsibility for the health and safety of the children attending camp. That concern is reflected in the hiring, training, and retention of staff. For the hiring process, the directors personally interview each potential staff member and personally contact at least two references. Candidates, both domestic and international, then go through a background screening conducted by professional organizations. Program staff then undergo an intense full week of training before camp starts.
In addition to clinics on how to run particular activities, training also covers emergency procedures and communications, appropriate and inappropriate camper-staff interaction, handling sensitive issues, and behavior management and conflict resolution. Participation in and observation of activities by the Camp Directors and Program Directors, staff meetings, and in-service training, keep everyone sharp and well informed.
We're committed to creating for our campers a fun and rewarding experience that we know will last long beyond the final day of camp!