Wow – That’s What You Do?
Everyone seems to know what we do through the summer months. We train staff, plan activities, support counsellors and program directors, guide and assist our new campers through their first experiences of overnight camp, oversea the leadership programs, run events, organise supplies, schedules, accounts, meals, security, facilities… the list is endless, exhausting… and exhilarating.
But what do we do the rest of the year?
We’re often asked this question and I think sometimes the rationale behind it is that because we run a summer camp, we must pretty much relax and do nothing the rest of the year. Right? Wrong! So here’s a calendar… a Life in the Year of a Camp Director!
September
Set up the Winter offices, sort the summer’s photos and videos, compete the year’s accounts, write newsletters, organise charity donations. In September, we also review the summer and any changes we need to make for next year… and we hire the next season’s Senior Staff.
October
A busy month, as we design all the programs that we will run for our next season. We also create social media posts, and design our promotional materials – website, newsletters and the glossy annual brochure.
November
Registration vamps up for the next season, with Info Sessions, visits with potential families, meetings about the international tours, and mailouts/emails to all our families. We publish our brochure – and open registration! The end of November is a whirlwind of completed application forms, family visits and communication with campers and their parents. Oh – and we interview for new counsellors in November, too!
December
Registration continues. In December we also begin booking everything for next year’s tour, and hold meetings with our host school. We finalise our camp counsellor team, health team and program director team, after more than 50 interviews. Then we take a 10 day Winter break!
January
T
his is the month when we send out staff contracts and hire any new program directors we need. We also begin our advertising campaign for the next summer’s new campers – including camp fairs all over North America.
February
By now, almost all our staff team is in place. We send out forms to all staff about the activities they would like to run in the summer. Advertising and marketing continues, including a mailing to private schools, dance schools and more. We also attend a camping conference in February, to share knowledge and resources with other camp professionals.
March
This is the month when we finalise our activities for the summer, creating a chart of everything our staff would like to run (spirit suppers, evening programs and festivals). We also meet with our host school to discuss menus for the summer – and our banquets! March is also a big social media month, and the month when we have time to look at our health and safety policies, to make sure they meet our needs for the summer. Our advertising campaign peaks in March.
April-May
Three important activities begin in April and continue through May: designing the summer schedule, planning our Staff Training week, and purchasing supplies! By this time, our staff is hard at work on all their plans, and Julie meets individually with all program directors about their curriculum content. We hold planning and training meetings for all our staff throughout the Spring – including a much-loved Spring Garden Party at which counsellors start to plan their dorm activities. We also work on our international tour manual, and finalise our parent manual for the summer. Buses are booked for Niagara Falls trips, airport pickups and more.
June
This is the month when we race against the clock to get everything ready for the summer! We assemble supplies, hold final planning meetings with staff and take care of logistics such as getting our staff and supplies to camp. We photocopy the summer schedule and countless other resources. About the third week of June we move to camp – and begin the best two months of the year!
Julie Hartley
Director, Centauri Arts
416 766 7124