The weather is warmer (finally!) and many schools have ended for summer — which means summer camp time is here! Below are some of Independent Sector’s members who offer a wide range of programs and services that engage children in educational and fun activities during the summer months.
Boys & Girls Clubs of America: Staffed by trained and caring mentors, summer camps and programs at Boys & Girls Clubs provide safe, inclusive places where kids and teens build their confidence, explore their interests, and build skills. The Clubs do whatever it takes to ensure kids and teens have a memorable summer and feel prepared for the upcoming the school year.
https://www.bgca.org/get-involved/Summer
Children’s Aid: Targeting high-needs neighborhoods in New York City, Children’s Aid helps children Iiving in poverty to succeed and thrive. Their summer enrichment programs include summer camps, summer youth employment, and Wagon Road Camp — which provides a fun, engaging summer day camp; an overnight respite program for developmentally delayed youth; and adventure team-building for school groups.
https://www.childrensaidnyc.org/programs/academic-social-emotional-learning#summer_enrichment
Girl Scouts of the USA: Whether swimming in a lake for the first time at summer camp, discovering the wildlife in their own backyards, or being a citizen scientist and observing bees in their local park, every outdoor adventure grows a Girl Scout’s “I’ve got this” attitude. Girl Scout campgrounds across the country and council-powered outdoor programs offer lots of options for Girl Scouts to choose their own adventure year-round.
https://www.girlscouts.org/en/members/for-girl-scouts/ways-to-participate/camp-and-outdoors.html
New York Edge: New York Edge helps bridge the opportunity gap among students in underinvested communities by providing programs designed to improve academic performance, health and wellness, self-confidence, and leadership skills for success in life. Their Summer Camps provide enriching, high-quality sports, arts, and academic programming to students throughout New York City and Mount Vernon, New York.
https://newyorkedge.org/what-we-do/
Share Our Strength: Share Our Strength’s mission is to end hunger and poverty in the U.S. and abroad. For millions of children who receive breakfast, lunch, and afterschool meals when school is in, summer is the hungriest time of year. Through Share Our Strength’s national campaign, No Kid Hungry, free summer meals programs, run by local schools or community groups, are open to any kid or teenager who needs a healthy meal when schools are out.
https://www.shareourstrength.org/
United Way: United Way helps its local organizations develop and grow arts, sciences, and other types of experimental learning that are accessible to all youth throughout the summer months — along with resources to run an effective summer program. Their goal is to combat summer learning loss, also called “summer slide,” which can lead to an ever-widening achievement gap, disproportionately affecting low-income students when schools are closed.
https://www.unitedway.org/our-impact/focus/education/out-of-school-time/featured-topics/summer
Wallace Foundation: Children from low-income families often do not have the same opportunities to learn and experience enriching activities during the summer as children from higher-income families. Consequently, they can lose ground academically, contributing to the persistent achievement gap between them and their more affluent peers. To help combat this, Wallace Foundation makes available a number of summer learning resources, including a Summer Learning Toolkit, with information on high-quality summer learning programs that offer a combination of academics and enrichment.
https://www.wallacefoundation.org/knowledge-center/summer-learning/pages/default.aspx
Wayfinder Family Services: Wayfinder Family Services ensures that children, youth, and adults facing challenges always have a place to turn. Their new Workforce Readiness and Academic Preparation program (WRAP) is an innovative four-week program to be held in-person at the campus of California State University Los Angeles (CSULA) in partnership with their College of Education. The WRAP program guides participants through completing the practical steps required to find and apply for jobs that match their skillsets and interests, and be able to practice independence skills on a college campus. Additionally, their Summer Workplace Readiness Program is designed to help young adults aged 16 and older who are blind or visually impaired discover their workplace potential and gain skills.
https://www.wayfinderfamily.org/blog/every-moment-is-special-at-camp-bloomfield
YMCA of the USA: The Y engages school-age children in enrichment and learning, including over the summer. The Y is the nation’s largest nonprofit provider of early childhood, afterschool and summer programs, with 7,360 afterschool programs, 1,870 summer day camp programs and 266 resident camps.
https://www.ymca.org/what-we-do/youth-development/camp
