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by Peg Smith, ACA Chief Executive Officer
What will it take for us to revolutionalize the effectiveness of the
camp experience?
Marge Scanlin would tell you it will be our ability to "listen to
things we don't want to hear."
You might ask why it is even important to increase the effectiveness
of what we do. I would suggest three important reasons.
- Parents increasingly want proof, or tangible evidence, that the camp
experience adds value. (Legitimacy Challenge)
- Campers, whether kids or adults, are being seduced by increasing
market competition, a fiercely competitive environment for time and
resources. (Competition Challenge)
- And finally, in my opinion, more importantly, campers deserve our
best. (Credibility Challenge)
So, what did the kids tell us during the Outcome Research project? Are
we ready to listen to things we don't want to hear? (Stop reading
now if you can't answer, yes.)
- Many kids told us they don't feel safe at camp.
- Many kids told us they don't have an opportunity to experience
leadership.
We learned much more, including what incredible "good" we
do, but these two statements merit attention. Will we choose to rebuff
and counter these findings, or will we pause, explore, question, and discover
new ways to address these hard lessons? If we challenge ourselves, it
could result in increasing our ability to deliver even more "good"
to those who go to camp each year, advancing our ability to meet the challenges
of value, time, and quality.
To meet these challenges, a number of camps have been evaluating these
findings, and more. ACA plans to use these new lessons as well as to continue
to gather lessons and learnings in order to position ourselves to aggressively
develop education, training, and professional development services that
will add support and add value to the entire camp community.
I am proud to work with professionals who are willing to listen to the
things we don't want to hear. I am confident that our willingness
to listen to the things we don't want to hear is one reason Lilly
Endowment Inc. gave ACA its second grant in five years . . . so we can
do something powerful with what we are learning.
Originally published in the 2005 November/December
issue of Camping Magazine. |
