ACA Research and Trends

Industry-Relevant Research from ACA

Welcome to the ACA Research site! If you need any help or have addtional questions, please contact research@acacamps.org.

Document and Share the Importance of the Camp Experience

• Measure Youth Outcomes
• Youth Development and the Camp Experience
• Nature-Based Experiences and Healthy Child Development
• Camp Research Reports and Articles (see below in Connect and Collaborate)

Enhance the Quality of the Camp Experience

• Camp Program Quality Assessment
• Program Quality Toolbox
• Implement a Camp Program Improvement Process (PIP)
• Healthy Camp Toolbox: Resources for Injury and Illness Prevention
• Spirituality and the Camp Experience

Improve Camp Business Operations

• Camper Enrollment and Staff Recruitment Studies
• Staff Compensation, Benefits, and Professional Development Studies
• Budget and Finance Studies
• Sites, Facilities, and Programs Studies
• Emerging Issues
• Camp-School Partnership Study
• ACA Fact Sheets

Connect and Collaborate

Helpful Research and Evaluation Papers

• Briefing Papers - concise research compilations on critical camp outcomes, benefits, and experiences (written by Committee for the Advancement of Research and Evaluation)
• ACA National Reports
  • Directions: Outcomes of the Camp Experience
  • Inspirations: Developmental Supports and Opportunities of Youths' Experiences at Camp
  • Innovations: Improving Youth Experiences in Summer Programs
  • Healthy Camp Study Impact Report
  • Camp2Grow Impact Report
  • Explore 30 Impact Report
• Bibliographies of Camp-Related Research
• ACA Public Policy Position Papers

Present and Publish Camp Research and Evaluation

• Submit a Camping Magazine Research Column
• Camp Research Symposium (NEW- 2013 Research Symposium Book of Abstracts now available)
• Scholarly Publications and Presentations
• PowerPoint Presentations
• Camp Research Presentations

Collaboration on Camp Research and Evaluation

• Research Collaboration Process
• ACA Research Mini-Grant Program
• 2008 Camp Research Collaboration Summit Summary

Recognitions and Awards for Camp Research

• Marge Scanlin Outstanding Research Award

ACA Committee for the Advancement of Research and Evaluation

• Committee for the Advancement of Research and Evaluation (CARE)
• CARE applicant information

Measurement Resources (scales, surveys, etc)

• ACA Youth Outcomes Battery (YOB)
• ACA Program Quality Toolbox
• ACA Camp Program Quality Assessment (short form) (C-PAQ Short Form)
• ACA Camp Program Quality Assessment Short Form Checklist
• Camp Program Quality Assessment (full form co-branded with Weikart Center for Youth Program Quality)
• ACA Camp 2 Grow Leadership and Environmental Stewardship Program evaluation survey
• ACA Explore 30 Camp Reading Program evaluation survey
• ACA Camper Growth Index (camper, parent, staff pre-post surveys from the 2005 ACA National Youth Outcomes Study)
• Other non-ACA measurement resources (coming Winter 2013)

National Demographic Data

• Census data
• Briefs
• ACA  demographic data
• Other related demographics data (education, volunteerism, etc)
• Camp Diversity: A Call to Action

Research from ACA Partners and Allies

The Evolving Buying Habits of Moms — Active Network