The will host its 11th year of summer camp beginning next week at . In her second year as director, Lauren Barry is expecting to surpass the success of last year’s camp, which had a . Barry is familiar with many of the campers as she is a 1st-grade teacher at .
“It’s fun to see the kids in the summer,” said Barry. “You see them grow year after year where they start as a shy 1st-grader to becoming an outgoing camper who is now helping new campers.”
While this is just Barry’s second year as director, she’s no stranger to the camp as she has worked with the summer program since its inception in 2002.
“It’s been great to see it grow,” said Barry. “The best thing is that so many on the staff come back year after year and there are some kids who were campers now joining the counselor staff so it’s really nice to see it come full circle.”
Barry also points out that many of the staff members are certified teachers in the school system so campers “get that next level of expertise,” she said. There is also a low camper to counselor ratio.
About the Camp
This year’s theme is Safari Summer with a brochure cover (pictured) designed by Lisa Douglas, a 2nd-grade teacher at Jerome Harrison. Barry and the rest of the central office staff have worked to incorporate animals into the weekly activities.
The camp, which is for students entering grades 1 to 8, runs on a weekly basis with different programs offered each week with enrichment classes like cooking, science and more, plus weeks dedicated to field amusement park field trips. Full camp schedules are available online.
Registration is ongoing online on a first-come, first-serve basis. Campers can come for the morning session (9 a.m. to 12 p.m.) or the afternoon session (12 to 4 p.m.) with before-care starting at 7 a.m. and after-care running until 6 p.m. Campers can bring lunch or buy lunch tickets.
