https://www.acacamps.org/article/camping-magazine/out-about-creating-safe-environment-lgbtq-campers-staff

It was June 2006. I had been conducting staff training at a coed camp in the Northeast. I had already spoken to the entire staff about the “real work” of camp, which I see as helping campers use the...

https://www.acacamps.org/article/camping-magazine/there-reason-understanding-challenging-behavior

I once worked with cat. Not a “meow” cat, although that’s how she identified herself to me. She was a thirteen-year-old girl who insisted she was a cat. You can imagine how hard it was for her at...

https://www.acacamps.org/article/camping-magazine/does-your-camp-reinforce-resist-or-relieve-gender-stereotypes

Can you believe that sexist practices and beliefs remain entrenched in camps, even in this day and age? Although we have made great strides over the last decade to eradicate overtly sexist behaviors...

https://www.acacamps.org/article/camping-magazine/transgender-youth-role-camps-might-play

You may be asking yourself, "What does a discussion about transgender individuals have to do with me? Why am I reading this in Camping Magazine?" We've had the conversation about the LGBTQ community...

https://www.acacamps.org/article/camping-magazine/assessing-youth-autism-spectrum-disorders-their-fit-camp

One of the best experiences for a child is that of being a camper. The opportunity to be in a child-centered environment, a setting that uses Mother Nature to help deliver a program resulting in...

https://www.acacamps.org/article/camping-magazine/aca-turning-points-leadership-lessons-past

"The future begins with the past." —Mary Chapin Carpenter As we celebrate the 100th anniversary of the American Camp Association (ACA), we have had several opportunities to "look back" at the...

https://www.acacamps.org/article/camping-magazine/summer-residential-camps-promoting-social-interaction-self-efficacy-among-young-adults-special

Social skills and self-efficacy are fundamental processes and necessary for individuals in everyday life. Seeking employment, living independently, making friends, and trying new activities all...

https://www.acacamps.org/article/camping-magazine/everybodys-nobodys-out

As a camp counselor this summer, you are about to meet campers from all walks of life. Just a casual look at the changing demographics in the United States suggests that your chances of having an...

https://www.acacamps.org/article/camping-magazine/embracing-larger-culture

At all levels of camp, people of color are dramatically underrepresented: in ownership, directorship, staffing, and as campers. This circumstance is unacceptable, especially because, within a...

https://www.acacamps.org/article/camping-magazine/more-art-camp-bauen-story

Terence Terence is twenty. He lives with his aunt in Zuni, New Mexico. His first Bauen Camp experience was in 2005, as one of sixty U.S. campers, and one of six youth from the Zuni Pueblo....