The kurse of Kumbayah: five camp stereotypes that derail new staff

Camping Magazine, May-June, 2003 by Jon C. Malinowski

Break the kurse

* Make sure that your grounds are not like those portrayed in these movies. Many of you will likely be insulted by this statement, but the truth is that there are camps that allow broken windows and screens to remain unfixed, hornets nests in bunk areas, and garbage to be strewn everywhere. These are not exaggerations--I have witnessed each of these problems.

* Include in your staff training an appreciation for caring for equipment and infrastructure. Tell your staff how much money is spent on painting or repairing windows. Share an electricity bill with them or the invoice for new sports equipment. Or better yet, talk to your staff about liability insurance. Read newspaper accounts of unfortunate cases where campers were injured because of staff negligence. Several of die insurance firms that serve the camp industry will send representatives to your camp to address these issues and emphasize the consequences of carelessness.

* Create a culture that doesn't allow your camp to be dirty or run-down, This can include, for example, an organized system to report problems to the maintenance staff. At the camp at which I work, senior staff report routine maintenance problems to the property manager every day before lunch. More serious problems are dealt with immediately. In addition, make it clear to the staff that certain issues--like mistreatment of equipment or garbage on the ground--are important to you.

Camp Party-All-Night-Long

To look at many camp movies and television shows, camp is the most decadent place on earth. In Meatballs, Bill Murray's character brings alcohol on an overnight camping trip with a group of CITs. Sex follows. In Friday the 13th, the first nigh t of staff training involves sex, strip poker, and smoking marijuana. In Happy Campers, staff spend the entire summer discussing sex with their campers, allowing them to see pornography, and teaching them how to pick up the opposite sex. Little Darlings (1980), Oddballs (1984), Camp Nowhere (1994), and Wet Hot American Summer (2001) all portray camp life as little more than sex, pranks, and/or substance abuse.

The problem with this stereotype should be obvious. New staff may show up expecting a summer of sex and partying only to find that they have to tend for sick campers, clean the stables, and figure out what to do when fifty five kids show up at archery Being a counselor, as we know, is a tough job that has great, but sometimes sporadic rewards.

Break the kurse

* Prepare your staff for the realities of their job--first and foremost. This can start even before camp begins by suggesting books on child behavior or preparing a precamp staff manual that addresses common responsibilities or problems. Why not prepare a document that outlines a whole week in a counselor's life to highlight the times a new staff member will be on duty or free?

* Don't sell them a bill of goods you cannot deliver. If you promise them that camp will be non-stop fun, you're setting yourself up for trouble. Be honest about the joys and pains of working with children, and counselors will be better prepared mentally to start the summer.