Start a College Club

"The best thing about being a part of a [skydiving] club is the camaraderie shared with other students who are equally passionate about the sport, either competition or teaching others to skydive … it was a proving ground of lifelong friends and teammates."
- Ian Bobo, Georgia Tech Sport Parachute Club, 2015

Why Start a College Club?

• Promote skydiving to the next generation
• Possible extracurricular credit (check with your specific college)
• Compete in the USPA Collegiate Championships, the oldest skydiving competition in the nation
• Club-partnered drop zones occasionally offer small discounts on club members’ first jumps (at their discretion—do not expect this!)
• College clubs are listed in Parachutist magazine and on uspa.org/dzlocator
• USPA does not charge for college club applications

How to Start a USPA College Club

1. Carefully read your college’s guidelines on clubs and club sports
2. A USPA drop zone must agree to be the “home” for your club, get management to agree in writing
3. Find a responsible group of peers to lead the club
4. Complete the USPA College Club Membership Application and submit as described
5. Follow college procedures to set up the club

Documents

USPA College Club Membership Application
(Complete and submit to USPA)

Model Club Constitution
(College administration may require changes)

Model Club Liability Waiver
(College administration may require changes)

Club Tips

“Find someone in the college management or student council who wants to make a skydive. Get them interested first. Get in touch with as many current college club presidents as possible and use their history to back your approach with the college admin people. Reference the [USPA Collegiate Championships] as a competition field for school representation on a national stage.”
- Ian Bobo

Remember that your college club is somewhat like a business. What benefits can the club provide your college in return for benefits they choose to offer? In the same way, what benefits can the club provide your home drop zone in return for benefits they choose to offer?

"A post or picture [in social media] that’s in bad taste can land you in hot water with university officials in a hurry."
- Jessie Magana, KSU Parachute Club, 2015

Club leadership should be dependable and have clear, designated duties.

School Admins Should Know…

It is only natural for school administrators—and more specifically the school’s risk managers—to have concerns about the school’s liability and questions about insurance. After all, they know practically nothing about skydiving, except that they think it’s dangerous. Education will be the key in bringing the authorities to a comfort level that will allow the college club to move forward. Without going into too much detail, here is what they need to know:

The sport of skydiving is recognized by the Federal Aviation Administration as an “aeronautical activity.” This means that the FAA agrees that skydiving activity has a rightful place on municipal airports and in the national airspace system. In fact, the FAA has established specific regulations for skydiving, which are contained in Part 105 of Title 14 of the U.S. Code of Federal Regulations (14 CFR 105).

For several decades now, the FAA has relied upon the U.S. Parachute Association to set the standards for safety of skydiving. USPA establishes skydiving’s safety standards with its Basic Safety Requirements, which address everything from the size of the landing area to wind conditions to training and equipment requirements for skydiving students.

College students who want to skydive can easily find a way to do so on their own. Offering the opportunity through a USPA-partnered college skydiving club ensures that they benefit from all of USPA’s programs and training standards.

Further Reading

Many details on this page were taken or summarized from this 2015 article on Parachutist.com. While some of the information is out-of-date (including the list of clubs), much of the advice is still helpful.