Big changes arrive at summer camp |
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Coleman said his organization is trying to strike a balance between keeping tuition low and covering expenses.
"We have to remain competitive," Coleman says. "We have to allow parents to offer their kids to go to camp. But
we have to pay our bills, so there is no shortfall in providing those services and the level of staff, not only that parents have
come to expect, but that camps want to provide."
Coleman is not the only camp struggling with increased expenses.
On average, it costs between $750,000 and $1 million annually to operate a camp, according to the National Camp Association.
And that total doesn't even include mortgage payments.
Cheley Colorado Camps, which have hosted children since 1921, are also feeling the pinch of higher prices.
"I hate to tell you what we paid for a box of Cheerios (years ago) and what a box of Cheerios costs today," says
Don Cheley, director of Cheley Colorado Camps. "I think camps have to price their program in order to survive."
New and improved
Cost isn't the only thing changing at camps.
An estimated 75 percent of traditional camps are introducing
new activities, such as the performing arts, sports and computers,
to traditional activities, such as swimming and boating, according
to ACA data.
For example, Coleman's resident and day camps offer an option for campers to "indulge" in a focus of their own,
such as tennis or the arts, Coleman says.
Some organizations are also scheduling programs that start before or after regular camp and that focus on a specific
activity, such as the culinary arts. Campers can attend these short sessions (known as "shoulder programs") instead of or in
addition to the regular camp session.
Campers who attend the shoulder program in addition to the full camp may receive a discounted rate on the extra
session.
Family camps are one of the most popular types of shoulder sessions. These camps allow the entire family to spend
a week together, participating in the same type of camp activities that are part of traditional camp.
Family camps typically are scheduled before the regular camp session (as a way for families introduce their children
to the camp experience) or after the regular camp session (allowing families to reconnect in a different type of vacation environment).
The number of family camps has grown by 215 percent in the past 15 years, says Peg Smith, chief executive officer
of the American Camp Association.
She attributes the rise in family camps to the "helicopter parent" trend, in which parents are extremely involved
in their children's lives or "hover" over their children.
"I think families are looking for places that they can share quality time, and yet they are also using that as sort
of an introduction to camp for the young children," she says.
Specialty camps also are becoming more popular. This variation on the traditional camp theme focuses on specific
activities or themes, such as wilderness adventure or community service. Some are hosted in nontraditional settings like colleges
or exotic locales.
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