BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Al Wiberg
PCIA Board President Al Wiberg is a very active member of the Midwest climbing community and is passionate about instruction and learning. He serves as the Assistant Director of Operations for Recreation and Sport Operations at the University of WI - Eau Claire and is the owner of Midwest Mountain Guides. He received his master’s degree in Recreation Administration (with an emphasis in Adventure Education) from the University of Wisconsin La Crosse and is a current Single Pitch Course Provider and Indoor Course Provider Trainer for the PCIA. Al helps shape PCIA curriculum as a member of the PCIA Programs Committee, is a member of the Association of Outdoor Recreation Educators (AORE), and a CPR & First Aid Instructor for the American Red Cross. Al currently resides in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin with his wife Michele and two children (Ty and Abby).
Jen Hopper
PCIA Board Secretary Jen Hopper has been the Manager of UC Riverside’s Outdoor Excursions program since 2000. She spends her time in many areas of the program: obtaining permits and reservations, planning and teaching the curriculum of the Leader Development Program, working with departments and individuals on specialized trips, and researching new and exciting locations for pre-scheduled outdoor adventures. Jen was a soil scientist in her previous career, and brings her interest in the environment and her questioning mind to her programming. In her free time, Jen enjoys climbing, skiing, and canyoneering, but loves just about any outdoor activity.
Josh Norris
PCIA Board Vice President Josh Norris is the Director for the Adventure Leadership Institute at Oregon State University. He has worked for four universities and seven commercial outfitters and founded his own commercial guide service with operations throughout the United States and Mexico. He was instrumental in the creation and establishment of a multifaceted university outdoor education and recreation program at the University of Mississippi, which included the inception of an academic minor and extensive course offerings. Norris has served as an instructor/guide trainer for: wilderness medicine, alpine mountaineering, white-water kayaking, rafting, climbing, challenge course and more. As a part of his work in outdoor education, Norris was also a script writer and technical adviser for a series of instructional climbing videos.
Todd Vogel
PCIA Board Treasurer and former President Todd Vogel is a mountain guide and outdoor instructor from California’s Eastern Sierra. He owns Outdoor Link, llc, a respected outdoor education firm, Sierra Mountain Center, and is co-owner of Wilson’s Eastside Sports, a mountain sports retailer, in Bishop, CA. He is an AMGA certified rock and alpine guide and has been a ski guide for over twenty five years. He was one of the developers of the AMGA’s Top Rope Site Manager program – a predecessor to the PCIA outdoor program – and works extensively in the institutional climbing field. Lately, he has discovered a love of ultra distance running. Todd was a key member of the AMGA’s accreditation committee from the late 1990’s to the mid 2000’s, helping align that program with modern field and administrative practices. His work for the last ten years has been primarily in outdoor education, focusing on the PCIA Top Rope Climbing Instructor program, outdoor programs for schools, technical trainings for outdoor leaders, and outdoor/wilderness-based organizational development programs for community and business leaders. He is also involved in public land education and stewardship, leading many volunteer groups on trail work and other service projects.
Dr. Andy Fields
Dr. Andy Fields first joined the Board of Directors in September 2010 and has continued to serve ever since. He is also a provider for both the indoor and outdoor certifications. Dr. Fields has been teaching climbing courses since 1998 and has supported the PCIA since its inception. Dr. Fields is currently the Director of University Recreation at Central Washington University in the eastern Cascades. He is also the founding Dean of Health and Human Kinetics for McCall College in Idaho and was the founding Director of Outdoor Education and the Stanford Leadership Institute at Stanford University. His scholarly research involves leadership development among adult learners, primarily in a wilderness context. Dr. Fields holds a doctorate in Educational Administration and Leadership, an M.S. in Adventure-Based Management and Outdoor Leadership, a B.S. in Environmental Recreation, and an A.A. in Liberal Studies. In addition, Dr. Fields holds numerous professional certifications that encompass a wide variety of disciplines. Although he engages and instructs in many outdoor pursuits, he has a special passion and vigor for the climbing profession.
Jon Tierney
Founding and current PCIA Board Member Jon Tierney is an internationally certified IFMGA mountain guide and has helped shaped PCIA curriculum since its inception. Jon began climbing in the mid 70’s in central NH. With a passion for rock, ice and mountaineering his accomplishments as a climber and guide include multiple high altitude peaks, first ascents on rock and ice, and hundreds of multi-pitch rock and alpine routes worldwide. Jon started his outdoor career as a naturalist and interpreter for the National Park Service and then became involved in outdoor education working with universities, youth-at-risk programs, and Outward Bound. In 1984 he co-founded the University of Maine outdoor program which he directed until 2001. UMaine was home to one of the first large climbing gyms in the northeast and became the first university program to undergo accreditation of its climbing program. In the late eighties Jon worked as a backcountry climbing ranger for the park service during the summer and in 1994 he established Acadia Mountain Guides Climbing School. Jon has maintained a second career in emergency medicine and has been a practicing paramedic and wilderness medicine instructor since the mid 80’s as well. Jon believes strongly in the value of education and that clients should be able to have confidence in their instructor’s skills through credentialing. He has been involved in the initiation and development of several educational programs. He continues to synthesize good concepts, challenge usual paradigms, and develop new ideas to raise outdoor leadership and guiding standards. His involvement in the PCIA is the next step in that evolution.
Jake Brunnquell
Jake Brunnquell is the Programs Manager for the PCIA and an outdoor instructor at University of Wisconsin – River Falls. He began his climbing career with the PCIA at an outdoor course in 2013 and has been instructing ever since. Jake is a climbing guide, indoor provider, and is currently finishing his outdoor provider track. He is motivated to meet the needs of PCIA providers and is committed to strengthening the industry. Jake received his MBA in 2020, and in his free time he enjoys all disciplines of climbing, fishing, paddling, trail running, exercising, and skiing.
