Middle schoolers creating podcasts. Kindergarteners building stuffed animals. 12th-graders taking a college essay workshop. This may not sound like your typical summer camp, but at St. Andrew’s Episcopal School’s Saints Summer Experience, this is just a sampling of what students ages 3-18 get to explore.
Now in its 69th summer, the Saints Summer Experience consists of nine weeks’ worth of programs open to the public. With four full-day camps, eight academic camps, 11 athletic camps, and 21 specialty camps, there is something for everyone.
“We offer the largest and most comprehensive programmed day camp experience in the metro area that is open to the public, with the exception of a few church camps,” said Jay Losset, St. Andrew’s director of auxiliary programs.
In addition to St. Andrew’s students, the Saints Summer Experience welcomes around 15-20 different area school students each week, as well as students from all over the country – even from other countries – visiting local family. “St. Andrew’s loves to welcome our students as well as new faces into our programs. Campers new to St. Andrew’s through our summer programs have even decided to enroll in school year-round because of their experiences in the summer,” said Losset.
The athletic camps are the most popular, but to Losset the highlights of the summer are the foundational day camps: Firefly Camp for rising pre-K3 students; Kinder Camp for rising pre-K4, kindergarten, and first grade students; Adventure Camp for rising 2nd-4th grade students, and Explorer Camp for rising 5th-8th grade students. “These are the camps where the magic happens – they get to do a little bit of everything and have the best time while they’re at it!” Losset said. “I am so lucky to be able to experience it for nine weeks each summer. I truly have the greatest job!”
While running the camps, Losset also has the perspective of a parent, seeing firsthand the benefits of each program. “As the parent of a rising 5th grader, the best part about camp is getting him off the couch, out of the house, and interacting with his peers,” he said. “There are no personal electronic devices at our camps, so kids are talking and learning, making and doing, in person. Most importantly, they’re gaining social and emotional intelligence by learning and interacting with each other.”
Older students no longer attending camps have an opportunity to serve as camp counselors, truly making the programs a community-wide effort. “Our summer programs are a big part of the school’s outward facing mission to serve the greater community,” Losset said. “We have students from all over contributing to the success of the program and serving as role models. Our Upper School students can earn service hours in exchange for working as counselors.”
A major part of that community outreach is St. Andrew’s partnership with Operation Shoestring. Since 2005, St. Andrew’s has hosted mini camps for the children of Operation Shoestring. This year there are 16 camps – about four camps per week – run by St. Andrew’s faculty, coaches, and students, and ranging in activities from sports to fine arts.
“I love seeing our students serve as leaders in the community,” said Cyndi Irons, Middle School counselor and director of the mini camps program. “They have as much fun as the campers, and many of them come back year after year. Hopefully it serves to build a life-long awareness and St. Andrew’s community enrichments are not limited to the summer, however. During the school year, St. Andrew’s has an alliance with McWillie Elementary, where more than 50 students ride a shuttle bus to the school each afternoon for after school care and activities such as arts, games, sports, and academic lessons.
“St. Andrew’s offers a wide variety of enrichment classes for Lower and Middle School students each semester, ranging from our long-running ballet program to newer, teacher-led classes like Tinker Time,” said Losset. “We average about 70 classes each semester, so there’s definitely something for everyone!”
For more information on the Saints Summer Experience and St. Andrew’s Enrichments, visit gosaints.org/auxiliaries.
