Camping Program Committee
The Camping Program Committee consists of approximately 18 persons nominated by the Nominating Committee and appointed by the Yearly Meeting, plus the directors of the camping programs, and the Camp Administrative Secretary, ex-officio.
The Camping Program Committee oversees and coordinates the philosophy, policy, financing, and program emphasis of all Yearly Meeting endeavors in the field of outdoor religious education—seeking to provide for all the various ages and interests of our Yearly Meeting through a variety of camping styles. The Camp Administrative Secretary is responsible for implementing goals, direction, and policy as set by the Camping Program Committee.
The Camping Program Committee advises the General Secretary on employment of camp directors and the Camp Administrative Secretary. The Committee nurtures and supports the directors and staff in the implementation of the outdoor religious education programs and works to promote awareness of the programs within the wider Quaker community.
The Clerk or another member of the Camping Program Committee
serves as a member of the Camp Property Management Committee.
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Manual of Procedure, August 2005, p18
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Advance Report - 2008
The Camp Program Committee had a busy and productive year. The Committee welcomed new members who have renewed the energy and commitment to BYM camps and the Committee. The Committee concentrated our efforts on several areas this year, including
- Financial Management
- Feedback from Campers, Staff, Parents and Volunteers
- Enrollment & Outreach
- Staffing
- Transportation
- Relationships with other BYM Committees
Financial Management
The Finance Subcommittee worked very hard to clarify the budgeting process and how to work within the BYM budgeting process. The challenge we face is that we submit next year’s budget before the current year happens. So situations
that have a financial impact cannot be reflected in the following year’s budget. Enrollment is also estimated under the same constraints and Jane, the Camp Administrative Secretary, has expended great effort to “estimate” valid enrollment expectations,
but the reality always varies somewhat.
The CPC is dedicated to running a program that is financially self-sustaining and follows an open planning and reporting process. We did not raise camp fees and did not propose an increase in our 2009 budget. However, this presents an example of the challenge in budgeting so far ahead of time: the increase of fuel and food costs will have an unplanned impact on the finances this year and may require some adjustments in next year’s budget. We did find it necessary to clarify existing financial policies: Payment is due in full before camp starts. Refunds are available up to May 15, minus a non-refundable deposit and administrative fee.
The Finance Subcommittee began communicating more closely with Stewardship & Finance to clarify the financial situation and operations that impact both BYM and the Camping Program. Historically, Monthly Meetings provided financial support to the Camping Program through apportionment, but this is no longer the case. Since this support was the initial basis for the “Quaker discount,” the CPC has begun discussing the possibility of having one camp fee for all campers. As the Camping
Program is an effective outreach opportunity and there is scholarship money available through many Monthly Meetings and the Barry Morley Endowment, we see many benefits to this. We also recognize the historical reasoning and attachment to the current practice. We will continue to work with Stewardship & Finance to clarify the policies surrounding the Barry Morley endowment and look for way opening regarding the fee structure.
The CPC worked with the Ad-hoc Development Committee and is looking forward to working with a new Development Director to coordinate fundraising efforts. We feel that the large camping program alumni base is an untapped source of support and we want to work with the Development Director to reach out to this group. The Committee has been contacted by a group of camp alumni who are interested in planning a 50th Anniversary event for Catoctin Quaker Camp. This event is being planned for late August at Catoctin.
Feedback
This was our second year using the online survey, and the survey results once again gave the Committee useful feedback to guide our off-season work as well as the operation of camps in session; this was highly appreciated by the CPC committee members, and the directors as well. The compiled data was easy to work with and helpful to all involved.
For example, the surveys indicated uneven satisfaction with food across the camps. The Camping Program aims to provide the best possible diet to our campers, using wholesome foods in keeping with our Quaker testimonies, while keeping to a very tight budget. We are fortunate to have some very good Kitchen Managers who plan the meals, shop for food & supplies, and lead the volunteer cooks. However, there are still some gaps where we need additional leadership in the camp kitchens. The CPC has initiated additional efforts to support kitchen managers and ensure that the combined years of experience accumulated
in the kitchens can translate into additional guidance for new kitchen staff.
Enrollment & Outreach/Marketing
The Committee has struggled with ways to increase enrollment, in particular at Opequon and Shiloh. Typically, both Teen Adventure and Catoctin fill quickly and we struggle to find campers for the other camps. This year, both Catoctin and Shiloh had lower than normal enrollment for the third session, and the Directors were able to make related adjustments to the staffing and program. TA was able to take all the campers who applied this year, and ran the same number of groups as last year.
Some ideas the Committee has explored are visitation days, during camp or in the spring/fall; advertising in Quaker publications;
and visits to Monthly Meetings to provide information on camps, especially Opequon and Shiloh. Historically, word of mouth has been our most effective method of “advertising” but the sense of the CPC is that we need to do more.
The Camp Administrative Secretary worked to revise the camping programs website. This was done with an eye to make it more appealing to potential campers and families not already familiar with BYM camping programs. The CPC also wanted to have all of its policies, handbooks, forms, etc. easily accessible to campers, parents, and staff.
The Committee expressed our gratitude to CPC Member and former camp staff, Nathan Harrington, for stepping up to coordinate the outreach/marketing efforts. CPC members and camp alumni have visited many Monthly Meetings this year, sharing their personal experiences, presenting a slide show, and answering questions from potential campers and their parents. CPC members attended camp fairs, visited Friends’ schools, wrote articles for the Friends Journal, and posted notices in their own communities. We also began a print ad campaign with ads in several newspapers in Virginia. As with many marketing campaigns, it may take some time to determine the effectiveness of these efforts.
Support of Staff
In the fall, our Camp Administrative Secretary, Jane Megginson, had a personal opportunity to move out of the Washington DC area. She developed and put forward a proposal to continue her job with BYM by telecommuting, and the CPC supported
this proposal. We have worked with the General Secretary and the Supervisory Committee to pilot, review, and refine this arrangement, which the CPC feels is working well. Jane has been committed to the Camping Program for many years and the program has benefitted greatly from her skills.
The Committee considered the importance of their role in supporting the directors both during the camp season and in the off season when our directors are busy with their other jobs and have less energy to give to camp. At the directors’ retreat a related query led to wonderful discussion and many solid positive ways that the Committee can support our directors. This included exploring the idea of co-directors at all camps. The sense of the committee is that while co-directors can be an excellent way to run camp, each camp and each director or pair of co-directors will need to be considered on an individual basis; what works for one may not work for another.
Allison Downey, after helping to co-lead a successful expansion of TA in 2007, resigned to pursue other career opportunities. Jen Schneider continued in her new role of TA co-director and David Gregal was hired as a new co-director to work with her. Catoctin returned to a single directorship under Linda Garretson, after Alex Jadin was unable to return as co-director.
As we began to address the need for a new co-director at TA again this year, the Committee started to explore how to address future leadership needs, in particular guidelines for directors/co-director turnovers and working with the General Secretary & Supervisory Committee in hiring new Directors. There are many talented and committed staff within the Camping Program and we want to support their leadership development whenever possible. This discussion was timely as we are now in the process of looking for a new director for Shiloh; Dana Foster will step down at the end of this camp season after directing Shiloh for 13 years.
Transportation
Once again the Committee and the directors discussed the need for more drivers with Commercial Driver’s License at each camp to alleviate the stress of driving; currently only a couple of staff members per camp have CDLs and are able to drive for the trips.
In the joint meeting with Camp Property Management Committee, we explored the concept of buying our own buses or continuing to rent the buses from Sandy Springs Friends School. CPMC and CPC recommended the purchase of our own buses that can be rented out to other programs in our off-season. During this joint meeting the Committees also discussed the maintenance of the camp “fleet” during the non-camp season.
Youth Safety
The Camping Program has long been attentive to the safety needs of youth participating in its programs and continually addresses
this through careful hiring and training of staff and counselors each year during the two weeks before camp starts. We also implemented the practice of background checks for all volunteers. Our safety policies are now available on the updated website. CPC is represented on the Ad-hoc Youth Safety Committee and has been working with that group to define a Youth Safety Policy that will meet the needs of all BYM programs.
Advance Report - 2007
The Camping Program Committee had a busy year and enjoyed a number of new committee members who brought new energy and ideas to the committee’s work. As a whole, we are amazed and pleased with the uniqueness of BYM’s Camping Program and the quality of experience it provides all involved. In this report we focus on several areas which were of primary focus for the CPC this year:
- Camp Evaluation process
- Teen Program
- Leadership
- Under-Enrollment
- Finances
- Relationships with other BYM Committees
Camp Evaluations & related issues
The Camping Program Committee has always actively sought and valued the feedback of campers, parents, staff and volunteers, but the results of our past evaluation efforts—laborious though they were—have often been disappointing. This year we established a new evaluation process using an online survey. This process brought in more input from campers, parents, staff, and volunteers. The Committee was able to use the feedback to guide our off-season work as well as the operation of camps in session.
From the evaluations, the CPC developed the following queries, which led to rich discussion at the yearly directors’ meeting in March:
- How does the camping program honor different comfort levels with the expression of sexuality at camp?
- How does the camping program nurture and foster a sense of inclusion for ALL campers, especially those on the margins (quieter children, new children)?
- We (CPC, CPMC, Camp Directors) have collective ownership of safety issues. How do we support each other in assuring safety of people at camp?
The CPC and Camp Directors found common ground in realizing that we cannot assume that all members of the camping program community share values with all others, and we must be careful to communicate and be mindful of others’ values. In our discussion we again realized the importance of pre-camp training of staff as well as the role of counselors and camp staff in being aware of potential issues, then communicating clearly to resolve any problems.
In an effort to be good fiscal stewards and in response to the evaluations, the CPC has examined our management of food planning and purchasing. We encourage each camp to serve fresh, healthy food, organic when possible, keeping the budget in mind. Each summer our kitchen managers have a range of experience; some have held the position for several years, while others have cooked or been at camp but are new to managing the kitchen. This year, Betsy Krome, kitchen manager at Shiloh and CPC member, will be coordinating communication among kitchen managers at the camps to share planning tips, favorite camp recipes, etc.
Teen Program
Last year we had a large number of campers who were not able to attend Teen Adventure due to a shortage of space, and the CPC was deeply aware of the pain and distress this caused many families. In last year’s discussions about the space shortage, we identified a number of challenges to expanding TA including the saturation of the available locations along the Blue Ridge, the difficulty in locating appropriate staff, and transportation. Way opened this year to add additional trips in a North Carolina location through a collaboration with Wilmington Friends School. This year we were able to accept nearly all of the on-time applicants, and although it's too early to pronounce the program successful, we have every expectation that it will be. Although the North Carolina trips ended up presenting too many challenges to see it actualize, the process required investigation, discussion and negotiation, and discernment, which led to a closer to home option of slight programmatic changes to TALT (the 2nd year of the TA Program). The CPC is grateful to Jane Megginson for her role in recognizing the possibilities for expanding the program and for her work in bringing our ideas to fruition in so short a time (only a few months!). We are also grateful for our new TA directors, who have dedicated immense time and energy to program planning for the new approach to TA.
We also had a dedicated group of people begin exploration of a Teen Arts Adventure (TAA), which would be a more site based program potentially meeting the needs of teens who would like further camp type programs, but are not as able or interested in the level of physical activity required by TA. A successful planning retreat was held at the Clearing, with the support of Richmond Monthly Meeting and a grant from the Ethel Reynolds fund. The sense of the CPC was that while the vision of a TAA is clear and meaningful, the practical details of planning and initiating this type of program are too immense for us to undertake at this time. Even so, the process of exploration and discernment was good, and helped identify other existing opportunities for teens interested in this type of experience through Pendle Hill, Washington Quaker Workcamps, and other organizations.
After last year’s shortage of spaces in Teen Adventure, we felt we must clarify our acceptance policy. Our discussion reaffirmed some of our core beliefs: our belief that our programs work best and change lives most profoundly when campers are able to return each year, and our commitment to serving children within the Baltimore Yearly Meeting. We structured our acceptance policy around these beliefs. We felt that the Quaker testimony of integrity requires a full and complete disclosure of the process that is used for admission to the TA programs, and the step-by-step process is now posted on the Camping Program website.
Leadership
We are blessed with talented and committed Camp Directors with long successful tenures. However, for a few, success and growth in other areas of their lives has required them to look for new ways to be a part of the camping program. CPC helped interview 3 new directors—Jennifer Schneider and Alison Downey to replace outgoing TA co-directors Melissa Poole and Whitney Thompson, and Alex Jadin to join Linda Garretson as Catoctin co-director. The CPC has observed that the co-director design seems to be a good system for highlighting and complementing strengths, helping with off-season requirements, and supporting the leadership of the camping program.
Under-enrollment
Despite last summer’s experience with a shortage of TA positions, the camping program as a whole has been underenrolled for the past few years, particularly at Opequon and Shiloh. In our Advance Report of 2005, we noted a problem with underenrollment, which we believed was “caused partly by demographic trends, and partly perhaps by overconfidence in the power of word-of-mouth advertising and past patterns of family commitments. We may have failed to recognize the demographic trends in time to advertise appropriately.” We also believe this is a nation-wide problem for overnight summer camps. Neverthless, we continue to explore ways to increase enrollment, including more effective advertising in Quaker publications and in other arenas, presentations to monthly meetings, and individual recruitment efforts.
Finances
It is always a challenge to provide a budget for the following year, when our current year hasn’t even started yet. In the past, the CPC has generally been a year behind in the budgeting process, but over the past several years, our Camp Administrative Secretary and our Budget subcommittee have worked very hard to bring the CPC budgeting process in line with BYM’s budget timelines. For several years the CPC has been working to make the Camping Program fiscally viable so that it does not rely solely on the financial support of BYM in order to function. This has required us to raise the camp fees. Although the new fees are higher than we are accustomed to, they are still well below comparable camping programs. Moreover, the increased fees will allow us to take care of necessary equipment upkeep. Finally, retaining experienced staff is a key to the quality of our programs, and meaningful pay increases for our wonderful camp directors and staff are long overdue.
We have also acknowledged the need to be able to change the way the scholarships are financed. Currently, many meetings provide scholarships for their young friends, and others put effort into raising money to sponsor youth from the wider community. Beyond that, BYM has a Barry Morley endowment that helps provide additional scholarships. The amount of scholarships requested outnumbers the amount of scholarship funds currently available through this endowment. As a result, we must continually choose between forgoing equipment replacement and other operational needs or denying campers the opportunity provided through the scholarship program. CPC has begun working with stewardship & finance committee re: fundraising to increase the scholarship endowment.
Relationships with other BYM committees
We generally have a joint meeting once a year with the Camp Property Management Committee, and we continue to find this beneficial to the operation of the camping program. This year, in our ongoing efforts to nurture more formal connections with other BYM committees, we worked with Youth Program Committee as they grew and changed, and we hope to continue supporting each other in areas of common focus.
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